5 Underrated Annuals Worth Starting From Seed Now – for Beds That Are Bursting With Color by Spring
Your garden will be bursting with color by spring if you sow these overlooked seeds now. Here are the underrated annuals that deserve a spot in your plot.
Annuals are the cheerful but temporary heroes of the garden. They are typically plants that grow as perennials in much warmer climates. We use them in containers, including hanging pots, along the edges of beds, and in mass plantings for bursts of color all summer.
There are plenty of must-have annuals that are popular for good reasons. Petunias offer rainbows of long-lasting color. Impatiens are easy to grow and thrive even in shade. Marigolds provide abundant shades of orange, yellow, and red, and shine in the sun.
These common annuals are great, but if you’re looking for something different this year, start sowing seeds now for these oft-overlooked annuals.
1. Nigella
Also known as love-in-a-mist, nigella (Nigella damascena) is a truly unique annual. The common name comes from the airy, delicate foliage that surrounds the flowers like a mist.
Most often, this overlooked annual has blue flowers, but they can also be pink, purple, or white. Nigella is a great filler plant in beds and is well-suited to cottage gardens.
Nigella is easy to grow from seed in sunny spots with well-drained and fertile soil. Though you can start seeds indoors now, these annuals are so easy to grow you can direct sow seeds outdoors later with just as much success.
Plant seeds directly outside in early spring and the plants will grow quickly. They are short-lived, though. Sow seeds successively every couple of weeks for a continuous show.
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2. Ground Cherries
Most people grow annuals for their flowers or sometimes spectacular foliage, but what about fruit? Ground cherry (Physalis pruinosa) is a small shrub native to Central America that grows as an annual in colder climates. The tasty little fruits develop in papery husks like their relatives, the tomatillo and Chinese lantern plant.
Ground cherries grow quickly from seed, so start them now to enjoy summer flowers and fall fruits. Start the seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost date. Plant them outside in full sun and space about 2 feet (0.6 m) apart. The fruit is ready to eat when it drops to the ground. Pick them up quickly to avoid losing them to critters.
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3. Black-Eyed Susan Vine
Black-eyed Susan is a popular native perennial, but have you heard of this similarly named annual? While not related, the black-eyed Susan vine (Thunbergia alata) does have similar cheerful yellow-orange flowers with dark centers. They are trumpet-shaped and grow on a vine.
This annual grows readily and easily from seeds. Start indoors about 8 weeks before your last frost date for flowers by mid-spring.
Give your black-eyed Susan vine a sunny spot outside and something to climb. It will sprawl over anything in its path. One benefit of growing this flower from seed is that you can find a lot of different varieties for sale. These include various shades of orange, peach, and white blooms. Some even have delicate fragrances.
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4. Garden Balsam
Garden balsam (Impatiens balsamina) is an old-fashioned plant and one-time staple of cottage gardens that deserves a comeback. Balsam grows upright, has fleshy stems, and pretty flowers.
The most popular varieties have double blooms. These ruffled flowers resemble camellias. Balsam is also called touch-me-not for its seed pods that explode and expel seeds up to 6 feet (1.8 m) away at the slightest touch when ripe.
Start seeds now and transplant garden balsam outdoors after the last frost. Like other impatiens, these flowers can grow in shade as well as full sun with a little afternoon shade. Organic, well-drained soil that stays evenly moist is best for these underrated beauties.
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5. Iceland Poppies
Iceland poppy (Papaver nudicaule) is a unique annual in that it is a perennial in colder climates, but is often grown only in summer in warmer areas. They thrive in cooler temperatures, so they do best in gardens where summers don’t get too hot and humid.
They bloom ideally in temperatures around 70°F (21°C) and cooler. Even in these regions, you can grow Iceland poppies in spring and again in fall. Sow seeds late in the fall for blooms the following spring.
The best way to grow them is to sow the seeds directly outdoors. Choose a sunny spot with soil that drains very well. Iceland poppies are shorter and smaller than the more common oriental poppy, but they have similar flowers. You can find different varieties with flowers in orange, pink, red, yellow, apricot, and white. Deadhead your poppies regularly to encourage more blooms.
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