I get such interesting ideas with threads like this. Lets hear and see your recent favourites (even going back into 2020).

ANNUALS:

Nemesia (PWinners Aromance): I picked up a single plant, just on a whim (never having had a Nemesia before) and I put it in a small pot by itself. It performed spectacularly all season, well into Fall; a bloom machine with no dead heading required and it seems pretty good in terms of water requirements. I will definitely add more in 2022.

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Cuphea Hybrid (PW Vermillionaire): I got this plant specifically because of glowing reviews I saw on houzz last year. Such an interesting flower. It took longer than I would have expected for it to attract pollinators but they did come. It was a bit messy in its pot on the deck as it dropped flowers all over and I thought I would have to compost it by early August as the Japanese Beetles defoliated it. But it did recover and bloomed its heart out in September.

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Ageratum: After seeing lots of complementary posts about this annual I did a large mass planting of it in 2021. It is an excellent annual in that it is a compact mass of blooms and water conserving once it is established.

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Nasturtium (Phoenix): I have grown nasturtium in many years but this is the first time having the variety Phoenix. I had no idea that this is a nasturtium that climbs! I discovered this because I planted one in the ground very near a cedar hedge. By August it had multiple tendrils, some 10 feet up from the mother plant on the ground weaving in and out of the cedar hedge. It was so cool.

PERENNIALS:

The bush clematis (Rain Dance): I think this is a relatively new introduction and I bought one this past May and planted it in a container with an obelisk overhead. Once it got a bit established it was a bloom machine for the rest of the season, even into the Fall. (I have put it into the garage, pot and all, fingers crossed that it will overwinter successfully).

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Scarlet Glia (Ipomopsis aggregata): I have actually had this biennial plant for a few years but I think 2021 was the first season that I had plants mature from seeds that were self sown back in 2019 (prior to that I had a friend gift me 'baby' plants each May). I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to generate successful seedlings given my climate and my lack of sharp draining soil. It is my most reliable attractor of hummingbirds.

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Hydrangea (Endless Summer: Summer Crush): I have had a good experience overwintering a potted paniculata for a few years and so I thought I would try the more 'finicky' macrophylla type. Even in its first season it bloomed spectacularly in the container I had put it in. I have my fingers crossed that it will survive the winter. And so the 'experiment' is on going :). I will report back next summer ;).

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What are you working on?

Annuals Forum