Plan for Hot Weather When Choosing Annuals
2/18/08
Contact: Leslie Johnson
517-432-1555, ext. 151
or
Mary McLellan
517-355-5191
EAST LANSING, Mich. – Hot, dry weather is a given in summer. If you’re looking for annuals that can not only take it but thrive on it, consider these suggestions by horticulturists at Michigan State University:
** Petunias. In a warm, dry summer, it’s hard to beat grandiflora petunias for a spectacular floral display. Single and double flowers come in a wide variety of colors and color combinations, and some perfume the air with their fragrance. Multifloras have smaller blossoms than the grandifloras but more of them, and they recover better from rainy weather and heavy dew.
** Marigolds. With a little patience, you can have the bright yellows, oranges, golds and reds of marigolds easily from seed. A range of plant sizes means that there’s a marigold suitable for about any position in the flower garden, from low border to tall background. Warm, sunny weather will keep them flowering all summer.
** Zinnias. All that’s true of marigolds is true of zinnias except that the range of color is greater in zinnias, from white though yellows and pinks to oranges and reds, as well as bicolors. Flowers may be large, small or any size in between, with a few petals or many. Like marigolds, they can be grown from seed sown directly in the garden or transplanted for instant color.
** Cosmos. Delicate foliage and daisy-like flowers on graceful stems from 1 to 4 feet tall give cosmos a role in the cutting garden or with other annuals and perennials in a display garden. Flowers may be white, pink, shades of yellow and orange, and even dark red.
** Sunflowers. Plant breeders have done wonders with sunflowers, introducing new varieties in a range of plant sizes, many with multiple flowers in a range of colors reminiscent of marigolds: yellows, golds, oranges and reds. The giant types with their foot-wide heads and black seeds will tower over and delight and astound young and old growers alike.
“You could easily characterize these seed-grown annuals as tried-and-true,” says Mary McLellan, Extension Master Gardener program coordinator at MSU. “They are easy to grow from seed and can be depended on to brighten beds and borders and, in some cases, provide cut flowers in spite of summer’s hot, dry weather.”
Other good annual choices for hot weather include portulaca (moss rose), nicotiana (flowering tobacco), nasturtium, cleome (spider flower) and strawflower. For partially shaded spots, consider fibrous-rooted begonias. With mulch to keep their roots cool and plenty of water, they, too, can thrive in hot weather.
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