Indispensable Annuals
by Dr. Ingrid Rosenfeld

ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED: 2000 Spring

TWG Editor: Ingrid Rosenfeld is one of the most passionate and opinionated gardeners I?ve ever met. She simply ?breathes? plants. Tough and determined, Ingrid had the gumption two years ago to start a garden center [Horvat?s] in Lake Bluff, IL. In addition to being a keenly observant plant propagator, she is one of those talented and long-experienced garden designers that knows precisely how ?your? garden should look?no bothersome drawings for her!

I often wonder what people have in mind when they tell me, ?I want a maintenance-free garden?.

Since such a garden does not exist, I guess what they generally have in mind is a garden covered by shrubs and massed perennials. Much as we have come to appreciate the wealth of perennials which have come on the market over the past decade, all of them need as much (if not more) attention than annuals?those plants that set seed and die all in one year. With few exceptions, perennials do not bloom from spring through fall. Were it not for the often disdained annual, big gaps would appear in our ?perennial? flowerbeds.

Perhaps many gardeners are not up-to-date when it comes to the numerous varieties of annuals which have appeared slowly but with regularity in our garden centers. I think that even some of the best gardeners have not yet realized the great improvements that have been made even in the ?good old standby? varieties of which perhaps everybody got a bit tired. So, perhaps it is time to take a second look and be surprised!

When describing some of these plants for you, we include our own observations concerning the care and feeding of same, which may not be scientific in as much as we did not spend ten years hanging on their every whim with our magnifying glass and weighing every root, dry or wet. We just observe. In the end, you may well be of different opinion, but we?d very much like to hear from you?we will add your wisdom to our?s!

Abelmoschus moschatus (Malvaceae): In general, it is with this plant as with all others which we have grown over many, many years: one year a plant will be a marvel of bloom and beauty; next year?total dud. To date, nobody has given us a lucid answer to this phenomenon. So it is with this plant: it is a great container plant, comes from India, shrubby, spreading sideways, blooms from July til? frost with hibiscus-like blooms in a range of color from orange, to scarlet, to pink, with white centers. Likes sun and warmth, carry it out to the patio in summer but from our observations?under the current climactic conditions?don?t put too many plants into full sun. Mid-day shade is almost a must for most.

Abutilon (Malvaceae): This year will be a good one for this plant. Kept some in the greenhouse where they have been blooming in their pots since January. These are easy to grow from seed. We?ve grown only the variety, ?Hybridum Maximum?. The flowers are chalice-shaped in shades of orange, salmon and light maroon. Have not tried them as a bedding plant but suggest pots for better survival. Watch for whitefly. I read in The Weedpatch Gazette that Logee?s Greenhouse uses Listerine® (the sore throat gargle stuff) to kill off the little beasts. Have to try it.

Ageratum (Compositae): Be sure to watch which variety you are buying. For instance, if it says on the label, ?Blue Horizon?, don?t expect that neat, small plant you?d like for the front of your border. ?Blue Horizon? is 2.5? tall and good for cutting or for mid-border. ?Blue Bouquet? is 20?, ?White Ball? is 10?. ?Blue Mink? is your border plant. There are more varieties, these are just a few, but always check height.

Amaranthus (Amaranthaceae): Haven?t seen much of this plant in people?s borders. Actually, it?s a grain which we introduced into East Africa during one of their lengthy droughts. (In its grain form, it tastes like millet?ugh?but needs little water.) However, there are some varieties which will make the most startling addition to your border, such as 2? ?Early Splendour?, with bright crimson red heads of foliage on bronze-colored leaves. We also picked ?Tricolor Splendens Perfecta?: a 2? tall plant with heads of foliage in bright red, yellow, and green (all on one head, of course). [I see on weedpatch.com that other nurseries sell other varieties...].

Arctotis (Compositae): These plants come from South Africa and were very popular when we showed it last year. There are many varieties, but we think ?Harlequin Mix? to be one of the best. Grey, felty leaves reminiscent of dusty miller and large daisy-like flowers in shades of red, cream, white, apricot, and carmine, usually with a dark center. Great for containers but also for the border. Blooms all summer and is about 12-15? tall. Keep dead-heading for new blooms.

Antirrhinum, otherwise known as snapdragon (Scrophulariaceae): Our experience with this classic: ?Floral Shower? blooms well, but has a tendency to flop. It?s best for pots (8-12?). For some reason, it is almost impossible to get varieties such as the medium tall ?Labella?, ?Liberty?, or ?Montego? in separate colors. The best we had been getting from growers were mixes, which very few customers really want. [Customers pick out their favorite color from the flats, which doesn?t leave much for later customers.] We finally convinced our grower to specially grow for us a medium-size variety called ?Ribbon? in a series of appealing colors. Let?s hope there is no crop failure!

If you want really tall snapdragons, get the ?Rocket?. However, ?Rocket? tends to get a bit too enthusiastic and bends in all directions. Except upwards. ?Sonnet? is another mid-size snapdragon with great merit; but again, it mostly comes in mixes.

Callandrina umbellata var. ?Ruby Tuesday? (Portulacaceae): I?ve never seen this one before, but it sounds great. It forms a nice mound, almost like portulaca with rose/violet flowers. It like sun and heat, just what we have to offer!

Cassia didymobotrya (Leguminosae): This is a tropical plant from Africa and should make a great addition to your containers, if a tropical look is what you?re aiming for. It is a small bushy shrub and bloom with 12? long yellow racemes. We managed to germinate a few?let?s hope they keep going!

Cerinthe major purpurescens ?Kiwi? (Boraginaceae): Also called honeywort. A very sophisticated plant to be added to your border. Blue/green leaves change to purple as they climb up the stem, ending in bright purple flowers.

Chrysanthemum multicaule (Compositae): Great plant for edging or pots. The leaf rosette stays low to the ground and stems bearing round, yellow button flowers curve upwards to about 12?. Blooms long into the season but does not like 90 degree weather.

Colocasia (Araceae): Don?t forget your elephant ears for around waterfalls, or in pots. Speak of tropical! These can?t miss with their huge leaves in either green or dark purple (?Black Magic?).

Calluna vulgaris (Ericaceae): The grower assures us that our selections of heather are hardy. This is the first time that we?ve been able to get a variety of these plants. They look good and have been in a cold house all winter with no visible problem. If you ever have seen a large patch of blooming heathers, you will understand why we?d like you to try them. Make sure they get nice acid soil, plus sun. Bees love it. So do butterflies. Their height varies between 3-20 inches, but the plant is mostly used as a groundcover or accent patch in the rock garden (a dry site in gravelly soil).

Cleome (Capparidaceae): Although we are sure that most gardeners know this plant, this is a reminder so you don?t forget. Cleome is the famous ?spiderflower?. It?s a fairly tall plant; however, since the flowerheads are so airy, it can be used throughout the border (except right up front). The flowerheads seem to float about your more solid plants or make a marvelous background. They come in shades of white, pink, and violet.

These will reseed prolifically and new ones will appear in the spring. Try to cut off the seedheads in fall and in spring pluck out the little seedlings you don?t want.

Dimorphotheca (Compositae): The Dandenong daisies. The Dandenongs are a unique and beautiful mountain range in Australia. They are home to hundreds of plant species including this daisy. Because our first batch of these plants seemed to bloom even during our mid-summer heat, we ordered all varieties. The first trials turned out pretty good!

Another daisy, the Osteospermums, tends to bloom mainly in the cooler temps of spring and fall?we have some in a greenhouse kept at 38 degrees, and they?re blooming like there is no tomorrow. They don?t perform well in July or August. We find this true for most plants with African names.

Unfortunately, the Dandenongs are often called both Osteospermum and Dimorphotheca, and Dimorphothecas can be of African origin: then they?re called, ?African daisy?. Then again, an Arctotis is also an ?African daisy?. Can?t we just call them all daisies?

Astericus maritimus var. ?Gold Coin? (Compositae): One of the best and longest blooming yellow daisies. Very compact?great for baskets, containers, and border. Foliage is shiny and deep green.

Argyranthemum frutescens (Compositae): Another daisy from ?down under?: Australians call it ?cobbity daisy?. There is ?Sugar Baby??white?; ?Melody??pink; ?Sugar Buttons??white with yellow center; and ?Butterfly??yellow.

Hamelia patens (Rubiceae): Also known as firebush. This is another tropical for the container and summer patio. We?ve never tried it before and have to wait to see whether it will germinate for us. The flowers on this shrub are scarlet-orange. These come under our special category, ?mystery plant?!

Hebe pinquefolia (Scrophulariaceae): These make very nice container plants, although they may get to be about 4? tall. Keep them trimmed. Flowers are white and are produced in dense spikes. In winter, it makes a good houseplant. Our other variety, ?Carl Teschner? blooms violet.

Hutchinsia alpina (Cruciferae): The ?chamois cress? comes from the high mountains of Europe and forms a dark feathery mass of foliage. From late spring into summer it?s covered with tiny little spikes of pure white flowers. From seed, so don?t hold your breath?we?re trying to sprout them!

Lagerstroemia indica ?Little Chief? (Lythraceae): We have been looking for this southern crape myrtle forever. Its hardiness has been improved so we are eager for you to try it. When it blooms it is a sight to be seen. It grows to shrub and/or small tree size so keep it trimmed. We just had to have this for our container designs. Our seeds have germinated, so keep your fingers crossed. It is supposed to bloom the first year.

Laurentia axillaris or Isotoma (Lobeliaceae): This was a great find! It?s a small, compact bush of finely cut, grasslike leaves, covered during the summer with never-ending blooms of bright blue flowers. Good for low border or groundcover. (There is also a Laurentia fluvatilis, related but more of a creeper.) Laurentia axillaris may also do well in containers, hanging baskets, or pots.

Leonotis leonorus (Labiatae=like a lion?s tail). That?s pretty much what this plant looks like, well, maybe more in the Land of Oz than the tails I saw in the Serengeti. However, it is a most striking plant, gets to be about 7 feet, has whorls of bright orange flowers all the way up the stem. Flowers are tubular, slightly bent up at the ends. There is also a Leonotis ?Staircase?, known as ?Lion?s Ear?. Looks to me about the same. Maybe if we get just a little bit warmer, it will turn out to be perennial. As of now, it refused to survive. Do not confuse this plant with Leonoru cardiaca, motherwort, which is a hardy perennial.

Limnanthes douglasii (Limnanthaceae): aka poached egg plant or meadow foam. The plant has been somewhat neglected. Some years it germinates like gangbusters; others, you can forget it. However, when and if it decides to grow it is one of the most free-flowering annuals in your garden. Like its popular name, it?s white with a yellow ?yoke? (center), has a delicate fragrance and attracts our much needed, but very scarce, bees.

Lotus maculatus ?Gold Flash? (Leguminosae): Although the plant has lovely little ?parrot?s beak? flowers, I grow it mainly as a great filler for containers and baskets. It has a ferny quality, greyish in color which offsets the deeper greens and brighter colors in my arrangements. It tends to trail over the sides of the container, likes a bit of shade and should not be left to dry out! The color, ?Gold Flash?, speaks for itself.

Melampodium (Compositae, Helianthus tribe): This plant is just beginning to catch on, although it has been around for a while. It is a very useful annual, easy to grow, easy to maintain, covered with yellow, daisylike blooms all summer. I find that it is one of the few annuals that can stand 95 degrees in full sun all day without wilting. If given enough water, it can even act as a foundation planting, just tall enough to do the job. The plant gets bigger and better throughout the summer, stops at about 20?, but in general will be about 15?. Just as good in containers and pots. Nice fresh green leaves.

Michauxia campanuloides: I have too much trouble getting these to germinate, so I?ll keep quiet. When it does germinate, it is spectacular! I?ll let you know when I do better.

Omphalodes linifolia (Boraginaceae): This little plant is great for pots and containers. Leaves are grey-green; lots of sweet scented flowers are borne in sprays all summer. 12-18? tall.

Glechoma hederacea ?Variegata? (Labiatae): This plant has more popular names than anybody can keep track of: ground ivy, gill over the ground, runaway robin, field balm, and alehoof. That should be enough! To simplify: it?s a container plant with interesting, round, serrated, variegated leaves on straight, hanging branches. It fills in quickly in case your container turns out to be a bit sparse, and is very good in cool-colored combinations.

Plectranthus amboinicus ?Athens Gem? and ?Variegatus? (Labiatae): Another one with many ?aka?s?: Swedish begonia, Swedish ivy, prostrate coleus, and spur flower. The leaves smell like oregano. ?Variegatus? is white/green and ?Athens Gem? is yellow/green. Very ornamental but tough. ?Athens Gem? has a creeping growth habit. I recommend using these in pots rather than the garden: they require sharply drained soil or else they will rot.

Strobilanthes dyerianus ?Persian Shield? (Acanthaceae): Outstanding foliage plant, grows to 3 feet, can be trimmed. The leaves are long and toothed, purple underside and iridescent on top. Great container plant, sets off all colors. It maintains its color even in the heat of summer.

Pandorea ?Variegata? (Bignoniaceae): We are looking for another climber for the patio, so we?re trying to grow this one. Its leaves are shiny olive green, the flowers (so the book says) are large, open trumpet-shaped, and pale pink with a crimson throat. Can?t wait. Hope it isn?t a flop!

Tibouchina urvilleana edwardsii (Melastomataceae): The glory bush is one of the most beautiful pot plants. We grew it two years ago, but our municipal well water killed it off. So we try again, but we?ll water with bottled water. The plant has enormous deep blue velvety flowers, blooms all summer and turns into a mini-shrub. Its leaves have a puckered texture which makes the plant even more interesting. More ?finger crossing? is in order!

Dr. Ingrid Rosenfeld is the manager, horticulturalist, and designer of annual and perennial gardens for Horvat Garden Center, Lake Bluff, IL. Horvat Garden Center is affiliated with Horvat Design Group (Dan Horvat, landscape architect) and Horvat Maintenance. You may reach Ingrid at (847) 234-6204.

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