Annual flowers are the most colorful flowers that will bloom all summer. Especially grown in Hanging Baskets or Container Gardens for enjoyment on your porch or patio. Annual flowers are also used in flower garden ground beds, usually in the form of 6-pak bedding plants. Again, colorful flowers all summer long.
Thrillers – Spikes & Cordyline
Use Dracaena spikes or red leaf Cordylines as the central focal point in your summer annual flower container garden. Other options include various grasses, including the ever-popular King Tut papyrus. Or try Cannas for a tropical look with colorful flowers.
Fillers – Geraniums
Use Geraniums in your Colorado garden flowerpot design. Creek Side designs depend upon their reliability to hold up the design in the center of the container and remain colorful all season long! We welcome the beginning of the season with the arrival of over 10,000 geranium plants planted in House 2, including 40 different varieties to be planted before the end of the month of January. Stop by to check them out!
Our most popular geranium variety is Calliope Dark Red because of the dark red color. Calliope’s are popular because that have especially strong dependable growth with big colorful blossoms that really shine in our Colorado climate. In addition to the classic Dark Red Calliope that everybody loves, look for Calliope Scarlet, Rocky Mountain Dark Red, Americana Red and lots of other colors including pinks, salmons, violets and white.
You will not find another annual flower that will withstand the heat and the drought of geraniums and continue to grow and bloom all summer long with a minimum of maintenance. Just deadhead the old past flowers to keep your geraniums looking fresh and colorful all season long. If you are not sure how to deadhead, stop by and we will show you. It’s easy.
Fillers/ Spillers – Petunias
Petunia, Calibrachoa and Verbena are the flowers that will mound and cascade over the edge of the pot. This year look for a new bicolor petunia varieties such as Ringo Star, Mayan Sunset and Hippy Chick.
Petunias are very heat and drought tolerant for summer annual flowers. Regular deadheading is not required as all the new varieties are sterile, and the plants will continue to bloom non-stop all summer. However, deadheading may be performed to keep the plants looking their best for your next summer party or gathering. Some people find it a little therapeutic.
Petunias often do require a mid-summer trimming to keep the stems from getting long and stringy. Early July is a good time for a “haircut”. Use sharp pair of shears and perform a bowl cut all around the pot about halfway up. Not sure how to tackle this chore, stop by the store and we will show you just how easily it is done.
Spillers – Flowers and Colorful Foliage
Spillers cascade over the edge of the container or basket offering the complete container form. Often colorful foliage is used in Container Gardens and Hanging Baskets to create this effect. Also adding texture and form in a different way than just flowers. This year look for several different types of foliage plants in our combination designs right alongside the colorful flowers for a big, bold design that will look great all season long! Including Ipomeoa also known as Sweet Potato vine.
Shade Annual Plants
Even though we live in a sunny climate, there are plenty of applications for shady annuals, especially including the big three – Begonias, Impatiens and Coleus. Creek Side features the brand-new Downy Mildew resistant series of impatiens Beacon. Look for Creek Side shady designs that incorporate the big three shade annuals, along with a handful of terrific shady accent plants this spring season.
