Well, obviously my favorite favorite annuals are zinnias. Like Jai, I have a few "other favorites" as well -- Portulaca (moss rose--they thrive on heat, but their seeds are a little small), snapdragons (our summers are a tad too hot for them, but they usually survive to bloom again in the Fall), and Nasturtiums (they make a nice snack and their seeds are big).

I like the look and color range of Petunias and their related Calibrachoas, but their seeds are just too small for me to mess with. The smaller seeds of the Zinnia haageanas are also a little off-putting for me, although I can handle them OK. I prefer the larger seeds of "regular" zinnias.

ZM

Seed size isn't my biggest concern. With my reading glasses and a seed clicker, I can manage the smallest seeds. What I want is the bloom.

And lately, I have developed a taste for really odd-looking flowers. Multicolors in a single flower, odd pure colors, good contrasting foliage.

I'm new here and this is my first post. Bear with me as I always add photos in threads such as this so that those unfamiliar with the plant can see it without googling.

Although my interest is really perennials (both tender and hardy) I grow a few different annuals every year.
Staples that I grow every year include;
Impatiens balfourii............




Salvia coccinea...........


Salvia splendens "Yvonnes Giant" form...............


Salvia urica...........


Amaranthus..........

Other annuals which I grow on a rotation basis (every two or three years each) include;
Impatiens balsamina...........


Nicotiana sylvestris..............


Nicotiana langsdorfii...........


Salvia algeriensis...........


Salvia miltiorrhiza...........


Schizanthus pinnatus...........


Lotus berthelotii............

I grow a lot of other annuals but the ones that I'm showing are all favourites in as much as I grow them on a repeat basis. there is one other group of annuals that include some favourites and that is climbers;
Lathyrus sativus azureus..........




Rhodochiton atrosanguineus..............


And finally, Caiophora hibiscifolia..............

Welcome to the forums longk! Nice pictures and some rather unusual plants in that group.

hostasmore said:Welcome to the forums longk! Nice pictures and some rather unusual plants in that group.

Thanks for the welcome!
New for this season will be Petunia exerta and P.ovata - interested in seeing how well they will do here in the UK. I also have some different Salvia and some Lepechnia to try.

@longk
Beautiful photos and plants Do you start them from seed?

luvsgrtdanes said: @longk
Beautiful photos and plants Do you start them from seed?

Thank you!
Wherever possible I grow all my plants from seed. The only annual that I do buy is the Lotus berthelotii.

longk said:
Lathyrus sativus azureus..........

I'm jealous of the true blue color. I'm in the US and I cannot find seeds that actually bloom a true blue. Most of the ones I've tried are more purple with blue hints.

Where do you get your seed? Is it easily available there?

Jai_Ganesha said:

Where do you get your seed? Is it easily available there?

I just keep seed from last years plants. The seed is available from Chiltern Seeds.

If it is blue seeds in general that you want then seek out Salvia patens "Oxford Blue"..............

Do you have a favorite source for true-blue flowers?

I see that you are growing the species petunia exserta.
I grow that also. But I see that the big seed companies have a new series of petunias which go by the name "Sparklers" which have that star shape.
Another year, I want to try those.

Hi All

I have my yearly favorites:
Marigolds cuz they just don't stop blooming
Petunias cuz they last such a long time even through some heavy frosts.
Impatiens for the blaze of color you can see for miles!
Lobelia and Alyssum cuz they fill my pots
Schizanthus (butterfly flwr)

this is why I plant Schizanthus
Nasturtiums
Giant Sunflower

This year I'm growing besides the above:
Pansy
Poppy
Sweet Peas
Amaranth- Josephs Coat
Cleome
Stock

I think somebody else said it "so many flowers so little space!"

Yardenman said:Do you have a favorite source for true-blue flowers?

Not really. I buy seeds of all sorts/colours from various sellers and a lot of seed comes my way via forum swaps as well.

For those looking for true blue then there is an Ipomea called "Heavenly Blue" that is good.

Commelina tuberosa is a hardy perennial that offers a good blue...............




Less hardy is Clerodendrum ugandense................

CarolineScott said:I see that you are growing the species petunia exserta.
I grow that also. .

This will be my first year with it so lets not count our chickens just yet Hopefully it will be a success though.

Petunias have not been started here either.

I ordered and received some of those blue species sweet peas. I only received 6 seeds so I want to do everything correctly and lose as few as possible.

Sweet peas are not my native language since I am originally from a hotter climate where they don't grow very well. But I have seen them growing here so I want to attempt it.

If I sow them now, in late winter, do I have to nick them first? Or is that only when I am sowing in spring?

The ground is still freezing so I would imagine that I should just put them in as they are and their seedcoat would be compromised naturally by the weather.

Just checking.

Jack I grew them a few years ago and just planted them direct around the 15 of March. I did mine in a pot and I soaked them the night before. I never nicked them.

luvsgrtdanes said:Jack I grew them a few years ago and just planted them direct around the 15 of March. I did mine in a pot and I soaked them the night before. I never nicked them.

Excellent. Thank you. I presume they did well? When did you see blooms? This will be only my second full season gardening in Pennsylvania so the timeline is still weird to me.