Annuals Resource Guide

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Annuals THE GASPER

Resource Guide Presented by the Nursery Staff of Gasper Garden Center

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Contents The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Planting Annuals

What is an Annual? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Best Time to Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Dig with a Garden Trowel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Separate the Plant from the Pot . . . . . . . . . 5

Planning is Key ook L forthese icons inttArubute Summary secD on to hetpyou ptanyourgarden:

Mix the Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Annuals that attract hummingbirds

Place the Annual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Fertilize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Annuals that attract butterflies

Watering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Continued Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Protecting from Frost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Annuals that attract bees

Keep Annuals Blooming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Annuals that attract ladybugs

Resources Sun Exposure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Annuals that are deer-resistant

Attribute Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Hummingbirds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Butterflies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Annuals that are rabbit -resistant

Bee-friendly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Ladybugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Annuals that are drought-resistant

Deer-resistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 About Gasper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

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Planting Annuals

WHAT ARE ANNUALS?

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

What are Annuals ?

P

lants classed as annuals are those which complete their life cycle within one year, or are not winter hardy. Annuals are some of our most useful garden flowers. Within a rainbow of available color choices, an almost endless supply of forms and sizes, and the ability to bloom the entire growing season; annuals have a place in any garden.

Brighten any Outdoor Space with Colorful Annuals The varities are amazing...here are just a few

Ageratum

Marguerite Daisy

Alyssum

Begonia

Celosia

Cleome

Lobelia

Marigold

Nicotiana

Petunia

Verbena

Zinnia

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PLANTING ANNUALS

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Best Time to Plant

I

f at all possible, plant in early morning, early evening, or on a cloudy day. Avoid planting during the hottest part of the day.

This protects newly planted annuals from having sun stress as they’re settling into their new environment. If you choose to tackle planting chores in the evening, you will give plants the overnight period to adjust to their new surroundings.

Dig with a Garden Trowel

T

he best tool to prepare a hole for planting is a sturdy 6-inch garden trowel.

The curved sides on a garden trowel blade allow it to hold dirt, and the pointed end is good for digging. If there is mulch in the bed, push the mulch aside. Dig out a planting hole 1½–2 times as deep and 3 times the size of the container of your annual. Place the removed soil inside a bucket.

Separate the Plant from the Pot

I

f the plant is dry, add some water but avoid making the soil soggy. Tap the container a few times on the side and bottom with your trowel. Invert the container and lightly squeeze the container like toothpaste while holding the plant at the base and the plant should fall into your hand unharmed. If the roots appear dense and “pot-bound,” lightly pull them apart with your fingers before planting.

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PLANTING ANNUALS

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Mix the Soil

M

ix a good compost like Bumper Crop Organic Soil Builder with the removed soil you placed in a bucket earlier. Use a ratio of 1 part Bumper Crop Organic Soil Builder to 2 parts removed soil. Mix in 4 heaping tablespoons of fertilizer per 1 gallon of soil. Use an organic probiotic fertilizer like Dr. Earth Rose and Flower Food. Mix the soil thoroughly inside the bucket.

Place the Annual

P

lace enough of your soil mixture from the bucket into the hole so that when you gently place the annual into the hole, the top of the roots are slightly above grade.

Finish placing your soil mixture around the roots and press the soil slightly. Be sure not to place soil against the stem of your plant as this can cause stem rot.

Fertilize

F

lowering plants have a special need for phosphorus and potassium to realize their blooming potential. The combination of Dr. Earth Rose and Flower Food and Bumper Crop Organic Soil Builder will provide these nutrients, encouraging blooms on plants.

Continue to fertilize by sprinklng a teaspoon of Dr. Earth fertilizer around the base of the plant. Repeat fertilizing every other month.

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PLANTING ANNUALS

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Watering W

hen all of your annuals are planted, water them with a gentle spray. This will water the plants without disturbing them. If you notice the next day that the soil has settled and exposed some of the roots, add more soil around the roots. Annuals tend to have shallow root systems so you may need to check them for dryness more frequently than other types of plants.

Continued Care Y

our annuals will need daily water for about a week to be established, then water as necessary. Many annuals want water daily, where others can skip a day or two. The water needs of your annuals vary with the weather, the season, and sun exposure. You must make appropriate adjustments as the weather changes.

Protect from an Unexpected Frost

F

reezing weather kills or severely damages most annuals. If an early frost is forecast for your area there are a few things you can do to protect your annuals. You can cover the annuals with light-weight sheets or burlap; add 2-inches of mulch to your flower bed; or water your plants a day before you expect the frost since wet soil retains more heat than dry soil. Ultimately all annuals die with consistent low temperatures and will need to be removed for the cold weather season.

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PLANTING ANNUALS

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Keep Annuals Blooming

K

eep the plants growing steadily throughout the season by watering regularly, feeding on schedule, and deadheading spent flowers. Deadheading keeps blooms coming all season long.

Simply cut off the flower stem just below the spent blossom before the plant begins seed formation.

Gasper Can Help

I

f you are not sure about how to take care of your annuals, or if you have questions, you can ask one of the many knowledgeable, expert horticulturists at Gasper Garden Center.

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Resources

RESOURCES

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

Sun Exposure TheopDmumamountofsunorshadeeachptantneedstothrive Full Sun

Partial Sun or Partial Shade

• 6 or more hours of direct sun a day

• 4 to 6 hours of direct sun a day

• Many full sun plants will be perfectly happy with sun 14 hours a day, every day

• Partial sun or partial shade is probably the most confusing category. The two terms are fairly interchangeable. These plants prefer 4 to 6 hours of sun a day and would be happiest getting their sun mostly in the morning and/or evening with shade through the middle of the day.

• Some plants are happy with sun 14 hours a day, unless it gets hot then they like some afternoon shade (when the sun is hottest). How do you know which sun plants prefer a bit of a heat break?

• If a plant is called partial sun the emphasis is on making sure the plant gets at least 4 hours of sun a day.

» If the plant is noted as being great for early spring it is a good bet that it will be happiest with some afternoon shade

• If a plant is called partial shade then greater emphasis is placed on the plant not getting more than 6 hours of direct sun.

» Plants that are noted as heat and/or drought tolerant are generally pretty tolerant of even hot afternoon sun

Dappled Shade

Full Shade

• Dappled shade refers to areas where there is a mixture of sun and shade, generally because a deciduous tree is nearby.

• Less than 4 hours of direct sun a day • Prefer morning and evening sun to mid-day sun.

• Dappled shade is similar to partial shade.

Plants in this category are often woodland plants and will do best with little full sun (even morning or evening sun).

• Full shade plants should also do outstanding in dappled shade conditions.

• An area that will be shaded by a fence or wall will need to get several hours of sun in either morning or evening for plants to do well.

• These plants thrive in sun that has been filtered by trees.

• Full shade does not refer to dark places.

All plants need at least some light.

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RESOURCES

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Attribute Summary ATTRACTS COOL WEATHER ANNUALS

RESISTS

Hummingbirds

Butterflies

Bees

Ladybugs

Deer

Rabbit

Drought

Hummingbirds

Butterflies

Bees

Ladybugs

Deer

Rabbit

Drought

Alyssum Sweet Alyssum Antirrhinum majus Snapdragons Brassica oleracea Ornamental Cabbage & Kale Chrysanthemum Mums Lobelia erinus Edging Lobelia Matthiola incana Stock Nemesia fruticans Nemesia Osteospermum African Daisy Primula Primrose Ranunculus asiaticus Persian Buttercup Tropaeolum majus Nasturtium Viola x wittrockiana Pansies SUN/PART SHADE ANNUALS Alternanthera dentate Joseph’s Coat/Calico Plant Artemisia stelleriana Dusty Miller Bacopa Sutera Carex comans New Zealand Hair Sedge Catharanthus roseus Annual Vinca Cordylen Madagascar Dragon Tree Cuphea ‘Cuphoric Pink’ Mexican Heather Diascia Twinspur Dichondra ‘Silver Falls’ Silver Nickle Vine Dracaena indivisa Dracaena Spike Helichrysum petiolare Licorice Plant/Creeping Dusty Miller

Heliotropium arborescens Heliotrope Impatiens Sunpatiens Series Sunpatiens Ipomoea batatas Sweet Potato Vine Isolepsis cernua Fiber Optic Grass Juncus effusus Corkscrew Rush Lysimachia nummularia Creeping Jenny Nicotiana alata Flowering Tobacco Pelargonium x hortorum Zonal Geranium Pelargonium peltatum Ivy Geranium Petchoa ‘Supercal Series’ Super Cal Petunia Petunia Plectranthus ‘Lemon Twist’ Swedish Ivy Salvia splendens Scarlet Sage Vinca major Vinca Vine/Greater Periwinkle

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RESOURCES

The Gasper Annuals Resource Guide

Attribute Summary

continued

ATTRACTS SHADE ANNUALS

RESISTS

Hummingbirds

Butterflies

Bees

Ladybugs

Deer

Rabbit

Drought

Hummingbirds

Butterflies

Bees

Ladybugs

Deer

Rabbit

Drought

Begonia x coralline Angel Wing Begonia Begonia x tuberhybrida Non-stop Tuberous Begonia Begonia x hiemalis Rieger Begonia/Winter Begonia Begonia, Wax Wax Begonia, Bedding Begonia Caladium bicolor Elephant Ear’s/Angel Wings Coleus Painted Nettle Gerbera Daisy African Daisy Hypoestes phyllostachya Polka Dot Plant Impatiens walleriana Bizzy Lizzy Impatiens hawkeri Group New Guinea Impatiens Iresine Chicken Gizzard Strobilanthes dyerianus Persian Shield Torenia fournieri Wishbone Flower FULL SUN ANNUALS Angelonia Summer Snapdragon Ageratum Floss Flower Bidens Bidens Canna Canna Lily Helianthus annuus Common Sunflower Calibrachoa Million Bells/Trailing Petunia Celosia argentea, Cristata Group Cockscomb Celosia argentea, Plumosa Group Feather Celosia Cleome Spider Flower Cosmos Mexican Aster Dahlia Dahlia Dianthus chinensis x barbatus Pinks Euphorbia White Euphorbia Gazania rigens Treasure Flower/African Daisy Gomphrena globosa Globe Amaranth Lantana camara Lantana Melampodium divaricatum Butter Daisy Pentas lanceolata Star Flower Portulaca Moss Rose Scaevola aemula Fan Flower Tagetes patula French Marigold Thunbergia alata Black Eyed Susan Vine Verbena Annual Verbena Zinnia elegans Zinnia

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RESOURCES

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

nnu A atsthatattract

Hummingbirds

T

he following annuals are considered generally attractive to hummingbirds. Hummingbirds prefer brightly coloured flowers with a lot of rich nectar to provide the much-needed energy they require. Unlike bees and butterflies, hummingbirds possess a long bill that can penetrate deep into long, tubular flowers where nectar resides. The plants that attract hummingbirds have little or no scent. Hummingbird-friendly plants are often red, generally blooming for a longer period of time than other flowers. Their flowers will be spaced far enough apart to provide access for the hummingbird while his wings are in rapid motion.

• Calibrachoa (Million Bells) • Cleome • Coreopsis (tick seed) • Cosmos • Dianthus (Sweet William) • Fuchsia

• Geranium • Impatiens • Lantana • Minulus (Monkey flower) • Nasturtium • Nicotiana

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• Petunia • Phlox • Salvia • Snapdragon • Verbena • Zinna DELAWARE VALLEY’S GARDEN CENTER DESTINATION & PREMIER DESIGN-BUILD COMPANY

RESOURCES

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

nnu A atsthatattract

Butterflies

T

he following plants are considered generally attractive to butterflies. These plants are nectar-producing and will yield great results when planted in such a way to provide butterflies with easy access. One of the biggest things that you need to remember when you are attempting to attract butterflies to your backyard is that you need to have a lot of different flowers for them to choose from. This way, you will definitely be attracting more than one type of butterfly. A great addition to any butterfly garden is rocks as well, this gives a great place for all of the butterflies to stop and rest their wings. Another great idea is to group the same types of flowers together; this will ensure that the butterflies will have easy access to the flowers.

• Ageratum • Alyssum • Bidens • Blue Marguerite

• Cleome

• Heliotropium (heliotrope) • Coreopsis (tick seed) • Impatiens • Cosmos • Lantana • Dahlberg Daisy

• Nicotiana • Osteospermum • Petunia • Salvia

• Dianthus

• Lathyrus (Sweet Pea) • Marigold

• Calendula

• Gaillardia (blanket flower)

• Nasturtium

• Verbena

• Calibrachoa

• Geranium

• Nemesia

• Zinna

• Brachyscome (swan river daisy)

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• Snapdragon

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COOL WEATHER RESOURCES ANNUALS

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

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Bee Friendly

N

ative bee populations have been experiencing decline due to loss of habitat, increased use of pesticides (especially Neonicotinoids), disease and other baffling issues such as colony collapse disorder. Why should we care? Bees, through pollination, are directly responsible for nearly one third of all the food and beverages that we eat.

You can help by planting bee-friendly flowering plants in your yard. Bees tend to like yellow, blue, purple, violet and white flowers. Studies have shown that planting a flowering strip near your vegetable garden can increase the yield and even size of your produce. Use good, organic gardening practices. Bee-friendly gardens also benefit other beneficial bugs and pollinators such as butterflies and ladybugs. They are also more attractive to birds and other wildlife. Not least of all, they make our gardens a more habitable and welcoming place for ourselves, children and pets.

• Cosmos • Marigold • Pansies

• Snapdragon • Sunflowers • Zinnia

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RESOURCES

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

nnu A atsthatattract

Ladybugs

• Alyssum • Nasturtium • Geranium • Marigolds

B

eginning gardeners may be surprised to learn that not all beetles are pests. There is a type of beetle that is actually beneficial to the garden because it eats certain bugs that are pests. This beetle is commonly called the "ladybug," also referred to as the "ladybird beetle" or "lady beetle."

There is more than one type of ladybug. Hippodamia convergens is one that is native to North America. If you find plants in your yard covered with sooty mold and/or ants, the true culprit may be one of the sucking insect pests, such as aphids. Detecting and fighting these pests can cause you a lot of extra landscape maintenance. Ladybugs can help you with this work because they eat such pests. Luckily, there are plants that you can grow to attract these beneficial insects to your garden.

Hippodamia convergens offers a welcome change of pace. Rather than eating your plants, these ladybugs eat some of the pests that do eat your plants. As a bonus, even the larvae of ladybugs eat garden pests. Just one ladybug can eat 5,000 aphids in its lifetime. Pests that these ladybugs eat include: • Asparagus beetles (Crioceris asparagi; ladybugs eat their eggs and/or larvae) • Green peach or "peach-potato" aphids (Myzus persicae) • Potato psyllids (Bactericera cockerell) • Spider mites (Tetranychus spp.)

Keeping Ladybugs in Your Garden Another way to get ladybugs to come to your garden is to make sure they have enough bugs to eat. While it may seem counterproductive, leaving aphids and other pests alone will help with attracting ladybugs. It may be helpful to plant decoy plants that will attract and provide aphids while you keep your desired plants bug free.

Plants that can be used as aphid-attracting decoy plants include: early cabbage, marigold nasturtium (these are aphids’ favorite) and radish.

Place shallow plates of water in your garden so ladybugs will stay to drink. You can also place ladybug houses (available in the Gasper Garden Center) in your garden to provide a home for your ladybugs.

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RESOURCES

Selecting the Perfect Annuals

nnu A atsthatare

Deer-Resistant W

e know how severe of a problem deer browsing is for many of you. Please note that no plant is 100% ‘deer proof’. A starving deer with eat anything! Generally, these ‘resistant’ plants either have rough, thorny stems or a bitter taste or strong scent.

• Alyssum • Angelonia • Bidens • California Poppy • Cleome • Dusty Miller • Euphorbia Marginata

• Gazania • Geranium • Helenium • Heliotrope • Lantana • Marigolds • Nicotiana

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• Rudbeckia Hirta (annual) • Salvia Farinacea (Blue Salvia) • Snapdragon • Strawflower • Verbena • Flowering Vinca • Zinnia

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