Discover 12 Eye-Catching Annuals that are Perfect for any Conditions

This is the perfect time of year to add a splash of color to your garden by bringing in some beautiful annuals. But, whether you’re planting annuals as borders, in planters, or in hanging baskets, choosing a plant that is wrong for the conditions in that area will lead to dead flowers and wasted money instead of eye-catching beauty.

That’s why we’ve put together this specialized list for you of annuals. Read on to see our top 12 annuals, and get the most bang for your gardening buck this season!

Ideal Annuals for Shade

Most annuals need a decent amount of sun, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy beautiful blooms in shady areas such as your patio, deck, or under your awning. Here are 3 gorgeous flowers that flourish in the shade.

Fuchsia

Fuchsia is an exceptionally striking annual flower. It sports exotic hanging blooms that are often bi-colored and come in colors ranging from pink and white, to red and purple (see photo above).

Fuchsia makes a wonderful hanging basket plant, and is perfect to hang beneath an awning, next to the porch swing, or even from the lower branches of your favorite shade tree.

Lobelia

Blue is one of the more difficult bloom colors to come by. Lobelia varieties such as Lobelia tenuiorand Lobelia erinus sport striking true-blue blooms.

Other lobelia varieties have pink or white blooms. Lobelia comes in cascading varieties that spill vivid color from hanging baskets or planters, and mounding varieties that work well in edges and border planters. Because lobelia grows to a height of under 12 inches, the mounding variety is perfect for planting in front of taller plants.

Lobelia explodes with color during the cooler spring weather, loses its blooms during the peak of the hot summer, and re-blooms as temperatures drop in early fall.

Balsam

Balsam is a taller cousin to impatiens, with intricate, wavy-petalled blooms. It blooms in pink, purple, lavender, red, white, or yellow, and reaches a height of 9 to 30 inches.

Balsam blooms from early summer to early fall, and is perfect as a border or container plant. Balsam self-seeds so, even though it’s an annual in most of the U.S., you’re likely to enjoy pretty “volunteer” flowers popping up year after year.

Sun-Loving Annuals

Most flowers need a good amount of sunlight. However, some flowers will dry out if they are exposed to the sun’s direct rays for too long.

Where some blooms may wilt, these sun-loving, heat-tolerant beauties will bask in the rays and reward you with colorful blooms. They are perfect for areas that receive a lot of direct sunlight.

Salvia

Salvia is a beautiful long-blooming annual that will grace your garden with cone-shaped clusters of vividly-colored, bell-shaped blooms from spring through fall. It is known for vivid red blooms, but this flower also comes in blue, lavender or white varieties.

Brightly-colored salvia varieties, such as the salvia in the photo above, are very inviting to hummingbirds and butterflies, so salvia will help you and your family enjoy a “live show” as well as the beauty of the plant itself. Salvia grows to a height of 7 to 29 inches, and makes an attractive ground cover, border flower, or container flower.

Lantana

Lantana is a tall, fast-growing annual flower that blooms in pink, salmon, red, orange, white or yellow. Also called shrub verbena or yellow sage, lantana produces rounded clusters of tiny, colorful blooms.

These often come with different-colored blooms in the same cluster. Lantana grows up to 4 to 6 feet tall, and can be helpful for erosion control, as well as looking beautiful in flower borders, containers, or features.

Bonus: lantana is very attractive to butterflies, as you can see in the photo at the top of this article, so the blooms won’t be the only color you’ll enjoy when you plant lantana.

Feather Celosia

Feather celosia (Celosia argentea) is a low-maintenance, long-blooming plant that will flower from June until the first frost in much of the U.S. Celosia is drought-tolerant as well as sun-loving, so you won’t have to worry about this no-fuss beauty during dry spells.

Blooms come in purple, red, orange, yellow or cream, and are long and pointed, with a feathery appearance. Celosia makes wonderful borders or groupings, and it’s also perfect for cut and dried bouquets.

It reaches a height of 9 to 18 inches, and is another flower that will bring plenty of butterflies to your garden. With its low-maintenance nature, beautiful blooms and ability to attract butterflies, it’s no wonder this flower’s name comes from the Latin word for “jealous!”

Drought-Tolerant Annuals

If you live in an area that’s prone to dry spells, are trying to conserve water, or if you just don’t have the time or patience to water your flowers, you’ve probably lost some flowers because of inadequate hydration.

These lovely drought-tolerant and heat-tolerant flowers will continue to thrive even in dry conditions. You won’t have to lose your blooms when the rain stays away for awhile.

Zinnia

Zinnias come in many varieties, and their blooms can be purple, pink, orange, lavender, red, white or yellow. Most zinnias have large, round blooms with lots of narrow petals, with an intricate ring of tiny gold-colored “flowers” in the center (see photo above).

Zinnias come in some vivid color combinations that can really bring the “wow” factor to your garden, such as the aptly-named “Zowie! Yellow Flame” cultivar in the photo above. Zinnias reach a height of 12 to 36 inches, and are beautiful in flower borders, containers or rock gardens, and make lovely cut flowers.

These bright blooms are attractive to butterflies, as well as people!

Madagascar Periwinkle

Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus), also called vinca, are lovely annuals with moderate to high drought tolerance. It reaches a height of 12 to 24 inches and produces small, 5-petaled blooms in pink, white or lavender.

This fast-growing annual blooms from early summer to mid-fall, and is attractive in borders or containers, or as ground cover.

Marigold

No-fuss marigolds are so easy to grow, they make a perfect gardening introduction for children. Marigolds bloom from late spring until fall; their round, lacy blooms can be orange, yellow, or a combination of the two.

Marigolds are moderately drought tolerant, grow to a height of 12 to 24 inches, and thrive in full sun. But don’t let the marigold’s unassuming nature fool you: aside from brightening up your garden, these low-maintenance beauties can also pull double-duty as companion plants for your tomatoes.

Marigolds drive nematodes and other pests away from your tomatoes, and help you maximize your harvest.

Annual Plants for Wet Areas

Most plants require good drainage to prevent root rot and other problems that can cause them to wither and die. But that doesn’t mean that wet areas , such as the area around your water feature, have to be drab.

These annuals will beautify even the soggy parts of your garden, so you can let your creativity run free!

Canna

Canna sport large, wavy, bold-colored blooms that can be red, pink, orange, salmon, white or yellow. They grow to a height of 24 to 60 inches, and bloom from early summer to mid-fall.

These tropical beauties make excellent wetland plants, border flowers, or foundation or container plants. Canna are perennials in USDA hardiness zones 8b to 10b (e.g. southern Georgia to central Florida) but, if you live in a cooler climate, you can store the rhizomes indoors during the winter and re-plant them in the spring.

Canna’s vivid hues will definitely catch your eye when you’re out enjoying your garden!

Elephant’s Ear

Elephant’s ear boasts large, wide leaves, and the foliage is definitely the main attraction with this annual. The Alocasia amazonica variety has very dark leaves with striking white veins, and all varieties of elephant’s ear thrive in moist to wet soil.

Elephant’s ear grows to a height of 36 to 60 inches. Because it doesn’t need a lot of sunlight, the elephant’s ear also makes a lovely houseplant.

Calla Lily

Calla lilies have a graceful, exotic beauty that draws the eye of everyone who passes. This flower comes in classic white, as well as pink, red, bronze, yellow, maroon, or orange (see photo above).

Calla lilies thrive in moist to wet soil, grow to a height of 24 to 36 inches, and their fragrant blooms make wonderful long-lasting cut flower bouquets. It’s no wonder these elegant beauties are so popular in bridal bouquets!

Photos courtesy of  Maja Dumat,  Jim, the Photographer, and Sid Mosdell.

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