Late Blooming Annuals - How to use Annuals Now!

Before you exclaim, “It’s too late for annuals,” I want to remind you that the gardening season extends long after the summer vacation from school comes to its end! The first frost date is usually around October 20th, which means there are are twelve weeks - eighty-four more days to enjoy your garden. Keeping that in mind, annuals are a flexible and colorful way to maximize your garden space, even though you may not have room in the garden for more shrubs or perennials.

Where your daylily flowers are fading, you can still have an abundance of color and blooms by planting Verbena bonariensis (Brazilian Verbena) in even narrow spaces between your perennials stands. In fact, anywhere your garden is past peak, you can fill in with the lovely scented Nicotiana (tobacco flower), Snapdragons, Pansies, late-blooming annual Salvia or Pineapple Sage (one of Victoria’s Favorite’s).

For striking foliage color, plant Persian Shield (Strobilanthes dyerianus), which has unusual glossy pointed leaves with saturated purple veining. The result is foliage that shimmers like miniature stained glass panels of blue and violet. Another late summer star is Colocasia esculenta, also known as Elephant Ear. Two or three of these large leafed plants can transform any garden into a lush paradise. Even a shade garden can be supplemented late in the season with various colored coleus, which will provide pop right up until frost. A true workhorse of the late summer garden is annual Purple Fountain Grass. Tall decorative grasses like Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’ can also transition nicely into a fall display with mums and jack-o-lanterns.

There are still twelve more weekends for hosting bar-b-ques or outdoor dinner parties, eighty-four more evenings of solitary strolls through your garden beds, so pump up your gardens with late season color, and enjoy!

Join Us this Weekend for Coffee in the Garden: Late Blooming Annuals!

Sunday Aug. 7th - Coffee in the Garden - 10am - Late Blooming Annuals

We're going to talk about the how, whats, and whys of using late blooming annuals.

"Plant annuals now?"

YES!

Last year our clients who filled in holes now had full and flowering gardens all the way through last year's mild October - that's tree months worth of full gardens -

"That's fantastic!"

YES!

Sat. & Sun. July 23rd & 24th - Rosendale Street Festival

Join us next weekend at The Rosendale Street Festival!

Are You On Our Email List?

Are you on our email list? You could receive special sales and discounts on plants like these every week. To sign up send an email to victoriagardens.ny@gmail.com with "EMAIL LIST" is the subject line or stop in at the store to sign up!

Are You On Our Email List?

Are you on our email list? You could receive special sales and discounts on plants like these every week. To sign up send an email to victoriagardens.ny@gmail.com with "EMAIL LIST" is the subject line or stop in at the store to sign up!

Join us tomorrow at the High Falls Fair Day!

Sat. July 9th - High Falls Fair Day

We'll see you there!

Rose of Sharon!!!

Pictured above variegated hardy hibiscus (otherwise known as Rose of Sharon).

Are you on our email list? You could receive special sales and discounts on plants like these every week. To sign up send an email to victoriagardens.ny@gmail.com with "EMAIL LIST" is the subject line or stop in at the store to sign up!