HO-99
Yard and Garden
HORTICULTURE DEPARTMENT COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE PURDUE UNIVERSITY LAFAYRTE, INDIANA 47907
GROWING ANNUAL FLOWERS
John A. Wott
Most home gardeners consider annuals (plants which complete their growing cycle within one growing season) among their favorites. Quite versatile, annuals are suited to a variety of uses and conditions. They are inexpensive; available in many shapes, sizes and colors; and most produce abundant blooms. Today, the petunia, marigold and zinnia are most popular, but there are many other annuals which are both practical and easy to grow.
Uses
Annual flowers are useful in many ways. They may be planted among perennials in a perennial garden, among foundation plantings as a low-growing hedge or border, or as accents in planters, boxes or urns. For landscaping, annuals provide a mass of color in contrast to the dark foilage of ornamental shrubs, and are often planted to fill in newly-established shrub beds and to overplant bulb beds to provide color after spring-flowering bulbs have faded. Many annuals can also be used for fresh-cut flowers and some for dried, winter arrangements.
Some annuals are not well-adapted to the summer heat (e. g. sweetpea), whereas others will bloom well all summer long. Some dwarf forms, the marigold and salvia, for example, will flower early while the giant forms flower later. Selection according to a desirable height is also possible in such annuals as the snapdragon and zinnia.

Location
Most flowering annuals grow best in the full sun and in a well-drained garden soil. Plants grown in the shade are spindly and produce fewer flowers. Those placed in wet, heavy soils also grow poorly. Before selecting a definite garden site, check for drainage. Dig a hole 10 inches deep and fill it with water. If the water drains away in 8-10 hours the permeability of the soil is acceptable for growing annuals.
Also check the sowing recommendations. Some seeds, such as poppy and sweetpea, should be sown in their permanent location, whereas most annuals can be transplanted.

Soil preparation
Organic materials such as sphagnum peat moss, leaf mold, compost and rotted manure should be applied early in the spring. Spade or rototill the soil to a depth of 8-10 inches, being sure to incorporate the organic materials thoroughly. Work the soil several weeks before planting in the spring in areas previously used for annuals. If annuals have not been grown in the area, the organic matter should be worked into the soil the preceding fall.
If annuals are to be started from seed, the bed must be level and the area raked smooth after the final soil preparation. All stones, clods, and old plant refuse should be removed.