Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I never buy annuals. I feel like it's just a huge waste.

I only buy perennials, shrubs, etc...And the shrubs are evergreen type.

I feel I am so boring but I hate a bare landscape in the winter and spending so much money on stuff that dies.

Message edited 5/11/2008 11:42:16 PM.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

when I lived in my townhouse I only bought annuals. For some reason the squirrels there would dig up every bulb & the landscapers would till the beds in the falls tearing up any perennials.

With our house I'm all about plants that keep coming back now. They are more expensive to buy but I think its so worth it.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I'm about 75/25....I mostly buy perennials, but annuals have better flowers so I usually buy a flat for the front bed.
My whole backyard is all perennials though, aside from some Viola's DH bought me a couple weeks ago.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I feel like I am the only one who buys mostly annuals! I spend so much every year, but I hate that perennials bloom for 2 weeks and they're done. I like that my annuals bloom May - November. I also usually wind up ripping out the wrong things or not properly cutting back my perennials so they never come back anyway My garden is my splurge instead of makeup/manicures/shoes, whatever, I enjoy it and don't really feel bad about hte money I spend.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

We are in our 3rd year at our house and the only annuals I bought this season where for 3 hanging pots. I've been buying perinials and I *think* I'm just about done.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

We have mostly perrennials and shrubs, but I get 3 flats of annuals to put in along the border of our beds. I love seeing the color all season long. It makes me so happy when I walk out of the house and when I pull up to the house. I don't get manis/pedis and I don't go to Starbucks or anything like that so I don't mind spending a little on them.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I do not. I wish I could but I have a black thumb and have tried a number of times to do it but it just doesn't work.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I never thought I would buy annuals, but we just bought some this weekend. I'm not sure if I will do it every year, but for this year, we will see how it goes and then decide next year if I will buy annuals again or not.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I have 80% perennials and 20% annuals just for some added color.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I find that the perennials, the flowering plants specifically, don't last for more than a week or so fully bloomed. Because of this, I did plant some annuals this year. Last year the annuals lasted the entire Spring, Summer, and the beginning of the fall. My tulips have already bloomed and dropped their petals though.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I buy a lot of them. I even change them up in the seasons - pansies in the spring, mums and some purple cabbage head things in the fall (I know that's not the right name)...

eta - My perennial flowers never come back right for me for some reason...

I have grown to love gardening and the annual flowers make me happy

Message edited 5/12/2008 12:29:13 PM.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Posted by KittyTheStray

I feel like I am the only one who buys mostly annuals! I spend so much every year, but I hate that perennials bloom for 2 weeks and they're done. I like that my annuals bloom May - November. I also usually wind up ripping out the wrong things or not properly cutting back my perennials so they never come back anyway My garden is my splurge instead of makeup/manicures/shoes, whatever, I enjoy it and don't really feel bad about hte money I spend.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Some one the at lived here before me, must thave planned it out so the annuals & bulbs each bloom in succesion--so there is always something going. SOem of that survived ( I think this was a few people ago) , but there are bare spots too.

The parts that were bare, I addeed annuals last year--impatiens aren't ver expensive & they fill in nicely. I'd like to do more perrenials, but I'm still figuring out what to plant when.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Posted by KittyTheStray

I feel like I am the only one who buys mostly annuals! I spend so much every year, but I hate that perennials bloom for 2 weeks and they're done. I like that my annuals bloom May - November. I also usually wind up ripping out the wrong things or not properly cutting back my perennials so they never come back anyway My garden is my splurge instead of makeup/manicures/shoes, whatever, I enjoy it and don't really feel bad about hte money I spend.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

Now I feel I need to buy some annuals.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

We are trying not to buy annuals, or at least many of them.

It's our third year here, every year we fill in with some more perennials, trying to get a good base, and then accent with Annuals. What usually ends up happening is that we buy more perennials and then realize the places we planted last year are not optimal, and then move them all around into a better arrangement. Hopefully we'll get it right soon.

They do have perennials that bloom later in the season (July/August) so if you get the right mix you can get some to bloom all season long. I can spend hours at the Perennial yard at the Blooming Haus trying to figure out what's best.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

i have a mixture of both. i really like flower pots so the annuals are in there. in some of the flower beds i have evergreens and low crawlers but in my new flower bed i put annuals. i love tulips and daffodils but they just don't last very long.

Re: Am I the only one who does not buy annuals?

I used to impulse buy without reading tags years ago. I wound up with a lot of annuals and a lot of wasted money too.

Not all perennials have very short bloom times but you need to do some reading to find them. The solution to that (at least will be my solution) is to plan a "timed" garden that will always have something blooming. It's the best of both worlds - you always have flowers, and it changes from week to week and month to month.

I'm not completely against annuals, they have their place in pots to decorate porches or decks or whatnot. One of my favorite annuals - coleus - is something that is totally worth my time to cultivate for just one season at a time. And it doesn't even have big showy flowers.