For A Colorful Yard Plant Annuals

Come summer time we see beautiful and bright color everywhere. The clothing we wear and the food we eat is all more colorful in the summer season. You can surround yourself with wonderful color by planting annuals in your yard.

When a flower has a life span of only one season it is called an annual. They tend to grow from the last frost of the spring to the first frost of the fall. Because of their delicate nature, you don't want to put them in the garden until after the threat of frost is over. There are a few annuals that can survive being planted before the chance of frost is past. Hardy annuals and biennials are those exceptions. Pansies are a biennial that can take a light frost and stay alive. As a matter of fact, pansies are an ideal flower to plant in the fall and have them come back in the early spring. As a hardy biennial, pansies that are planted in the fall will winter in a dormant state, then develop again in the spring and bloom wonderfully until it gets too hot for them.

There are some other flowers that seem to come back and grow again. Some annuals drop their seed and then it sprouts and grows in the same spot where the original plant was found. Larkspur, petunias, and snapdragons are good illustrations of flowers that drop seed. It is easy to count on having snapdragons or larkspur in the same area each year because they are so prone to dropping seed. When the seed drops in the fall, it stays inactive in the ground until the spring when it sprouts and produces a new plant. If you have an area of your yard that you would let to go a little ‘wild’, you could plant larkspur or snapdragons. To encourage seed drop, don't pull up the plants until the late fall. You could even try leaving them in the ground until spring. Then you will have a new crop of gorgeous flowers with no effort from you!

The time to plant you annuals is after the hazard of frost is gone. How you do this will greatly affect the flowers all season long. Many people just dig a hole and stick the plant into the hole, fresh from the container it came in. If you just plop the plant in the hole, you will not be pleased with the outcome. The proper procedure it to dig a hole a little deeper and wider than the plants root ball. Put a little loose soil into the bottom of the hole. Doing this will help the plant attach its new roots into the soil. Then take the plant from the pony pack that you obtained it in. You will then want to lightly knead the roots so they can break free from their present growing pattern. Plants you buy usually are a bit rootbound as they have spent so much time in the container. Unless you break up this root system, it will continue to grow in the same pattern and you plants will not grow very big.

Water your plant with a mixture of water and root starter as you set your plants. Doing this will give your plants a little shot of vitamins to help deter transplant shock. The next thing you need to do is something that people absolutely hate to do. It is essential to cut back one to two thirds of the plant after you plant it. Most importantly you need to cut off any of the blossoms that are already on the plant. Yes, the flowers look so beautiful in your yard, but you just gave this plant the shock of its life! In order for your plant to be healthy, you need to let it put all its energy into growing new roots and getting established. So, for the first week or two pick all the blooms off. Once the plant is full and healthy looking, you can let it bloom all it desires. Make sure you add time release fertilizer in the soil among your flowers. This type of fertilizer is perfect for summer annuals as they feed for almost three months.

Following these simple hints will give you bright, vibrant blossoms all summer long. Too bad the season isn't longer!

Article Source: http://www.newsarticlessite.com

Cathy is a self-employed essayist who enjoys biking and the outdoors. She likes writing about things she likes like vegetable gardening and family history. Take a look at her internet site, www.yardcart.net to find out about getting the best utility cart so you can have help in the yard too!

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