Annuals vs Perennials

The answer is in the eyes of the beholder or better yet the hands of the gardener. For years I thought annuals were the only kind of flowers on the market. You plant them every year, you get a mass of color all summer, they die in the winter (unless you live somewhere that never sees freezing) and you replant them again the following year. Depending on whether you want to repeat this activity each year will determine whether they are right for you and your garden space.

Perennials on the other hand are planted initially and most species double the following year. By this time they are well established and will continue to triple in size and color each year. Unless of course you are a generous gardener and most of us who play in the dirt are. About every three years you will want to dig them up and divide them. At which time you may choose to replant them in other areas of your garden or share them with your friends and family. In order to keep perennials producing vigorously I suggest a good division every 5 years. Otherwise, they will begin to “kill themselves out” starting in the center. They are eager little beavers to produce and multiply however they do need some stimulation the older they get, kind of like we humans do. My motto is a perennial isn’t a perennial until I have moved it at least 3 times!

The downside of perennials is that they each have a “bloom time” designated to a certain time of the year in which they bloom prolifically. Some species once dead headed (removal of spent blooms) will produce new blooms just not quite as vigorously as the set “bloom time”, unlike annuals that bloom vigorously all season. Tending to my garden and removing spent blooms and weeding is therapy for me. My husband thinks I am working but little does he know that I am having a ball! Shhh we won’t tell him the truth! After years of experience I have come to one conclusion, a mixture of both annuals and perennials will do the soul well. However I do have to admit, I have more perennials than annuals. I like to give a garden area a heavy base of perennials and then accent with annuals. The annuals continue to perform while waiting for the next variety of perennial to reach its peak. Variety is the spice of life in my book!

Once I have established the plantings it is time for the really fun stuff…decorate the nature around me! Sometimes I create a theme for a particular area and other times I do something whimsical and just add a variety of things I like. Either way I create a décor that reflects my personality. It makes a statement about who I am. Regardless of whether you have your landscape installed or you do it yourself, you are the only one that can determine the personality and the statement of the décor. The sky is the limit!

See our theme gardens for more ideas about creating your own theme.