Sowing Annuals

Hardy, half hardy and tender annuals are a cheap and easy way of adding color to your garden. They are perfect for filling gaps and for making a cheerful display in a new garden before you have had a chance to draw up longer term plans or before perennials and shrubs have filled their allotted space. Hardy annuals can be sown directly into the soil in autumn and they will survive the winter unprotected ready to produce flowers in the late spring or early summer.

Half hardy annuals cannot tolerate frost, so they should either be grown in a greenhouse, hardened off and planted in late spring, or sown directly into the soil once there is no danger of frost. Tender annuals must be raised in a greenhouse in order for them to flower early in the year. Heavy soils, wet weather and prolonged cold spells can take their toll, even with hardy annuals. You can still win the day if you have a greenhouse or cold frame, by raising hardy annuals from seed in trays, just as you would tender annuals and vegetables.

Sowing in trays is far less wasteful of seed than sowing directly outside, and the results are more predictable. Sowing in trays also means that you can place the plants exactly where they are needed, producing better displays. If space under glass is at a premium, you can still have the best of both worlds by sowing most of the seeds directly into the bed and, say, ten per cent in trays to use for filling gaps and in places where direct sowing is impracticable. It is important that any annual raised in the greenhouse is hardened off thoroughly before planting outside in its final position.

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