This is going to be the "year of the zinnia" for me. I have ordered several of the bi colors, and am looking forward to finding lots of color echoes to go with them.

I am also trying a tall amaranthus "oeschburg" that has red/purple leaves and brilliant red blooms. I'm going to use them as vertical accents in my yellow and blue border. I am hoping they will give it some zing.

I started 3 flats of Black Pearl Pepper seeds last week. They will fill a large raised half circle bed with a background of tall blue salvia and some scaevola around the edges that will spill over the edge of the bed. I actually used this combination in window boxes last year and was so happy with it that I decided to go whole hog this year.

I have my plan...I have my seeds...all I need is SPRING!

Every year is pretty much "the year of the zinnia" for me, but this year I will have a separate flower bed devoted to just white zinnias. It occurred to me last year that I have had very few good white zinnias, and this year I hope to do something about that.

I plan to grow several white varieties of zinnias in a zinnia bed located at some distance from my other zinnias. I have already picked out the spot. That way, hopefully, much of the random bee cross pollinations will be white-on-white pollen transfer. I will be looking for extra good white specimens to self and inter-cross and save seeds from. Whites also give nice pastel colors when crossed with other zinnia colors.

Also, since normal zinnia pollen florets are yellow, I will be looking for a way to breed white zinnias that have white pollen florets. I've never actually seen that, but I think it might be possible. Some of my experiments with scabiosa flowered zinnias have produced otherwise normal looking progeny that had florets matching the zinnia's petal color.

Amaranthus "Aurora" "Illumination" "Early splendor" "Perfecta"

Zinnia "Profusion double Fire" "Cactus mixed" "Peppermint stick mixed" "Carousel mixed" "Swizzle Cherry and Ivory"..

The rest I had tried before... :)

New for me this year from seed will be a burgundy-violet coleus called 'Dark Chocolate' and a blue catchfly 'Angel'(viscaria oculata).

You bet. I will be growing for the first time(mostly from seed)at least 50 plants I have never grown before. I am sure there is many thousands of plants to look forward to growing in the future, and isn't that a good reason to get out of bed again tomorrow? Al

I am going to try some Bidens, Profusion Zinnias and Dichondra. This will be my first year growing stuff in my new colder, dryer climate. Should be fun!

I am going to hopefully finish moving the big stuff (shrubs and perennials) so that I can stuff the space between with colorful annuals year after year!

I am looking for a fragrant vine, any suggestions? My 10 year old son has asked to try more sunflowers, and mini pumpkins, and maybe some ornamental peppers.

Fragrant vine? Try sweet pea. Or moon flower.

I'm growing old fashioned petunias this year.

Fragrant vine? go for Vigna caracalla "Corkscrew vine"..

I had two amaranthus "oeschburg" plants in the garden last year and loved them. The leaf and flower color, combined with the height, added just the desired zing. BUT, this year the ground is carpeted in red! I pull seedlings out by the handfuls and in a couple of days its a bed of red again.

I had planned to include them in the garden again this year but the tide has turned! With their 2000% germination rate I'll still be pulling up new seedlings at the end of the growing season.

Be warned.

Ah, June, I am still pulling up amaranthus from seeds that came from a plant several years ago. There are fewer each year but still popping up. Fortunately they are easy to pull.

I like to try several new varieties of tomatoes and zinnias each year as well as new to me plants. From seed exchanges and swaps I have hundred of seeds so there is always something new to try.