Show-stopping annuals will add drama to garden beds, containers

Planting annual flowers or foliage plants in garden beds or containers is an easy way to ensure months of nonstop colour. Most flowering annuals bloom from late spring until the first frost and foliage plants like castor bean or elephant ears provide interest with their impressive forms and striking leaves.

While I appreciate textbook annuals like geraniums, petunias, and nasturtiums, sometimes you need a little drama in the garden and it’s time to call in the show-stoppers. Here are seven impressive annuals to plant now.

TALL VERBENA

One of my go-to annuals for flower and vegetable beds is tall verbena. Also called Verbena bonariensis or purpletop vervain, this lofty annual produces airy flower spikes that grow four to six feet tall. The slender stems are topped with a cluster of purple blooms that are extremely attractive to native bees and butterflies. There was rarely a day last August and September when my tall verbena plants weren’t covered in monarch butterflies. The plants reseed easily with new seedlings popping up the following spring. Seedlings are also available from local nurseries.

CASTOR BEAN

With its show-stopping size and massive leaves, it’s hard to believe the castor bean is an annual plant. When given ideal growing conditions of full sun and rich moist soil, it typically grows 10 to 12 feet tall. Castor bean plants grown in pots are usually more compact and grow four to six feet tall. This annual makes an attractive temporary screen or use it as a statement plant at the back of a garden bed. Please note that all parts of castor bean plants (including the seeds) are poisonous. Keep curious kids and pets away from the plants.

AMARANTH

I always plant ‘Love-lies-bleeding’ amaranth at the entrance to my vegetable garden. The elegant plants grow four feet tall and wide with layers of pendulous blood-red flower tassels. Those velvety tassels invite touch and visitors to the garden can’t believe they’re real. There are also upright types of amaranth and my favourites include ‘Hot Biscuits’ and ‘Elephant Head’, a variety with deep red tassels that look like a trumpeting elephant. Most varieties of amaranth grow four to seven feet tall.

NICOTIANA ‘ONLY THE LONELY’

‘Only the Lonely’ flowering tobacco is a stunning plant that grows about five feet tall with lofty spires of tubular white flowers. The blooms, which release a rich scent each evening, attract hummingbirds to the garden. It’s easily grown from seed started indoors in mid-spring or you may luck into seedlings from a local garden centre. Note that all parts of the plant are poisonous to ingest by humans and pets.

BRANCHING SUNFLOWERS

There are two types of sunflowers: single stem and branching. Single stem varieties have strong stems and produce one flower per plant. Branching sunflowers can produce dozens of flowers from mid-summer until frost so the show goes on for months. ‘Moulin Rouge’, ‘Chocolate’, ‘Soraya’, and ‘Ring of Fire’ are some of my favourite varieties. Direct sow branching sunflower seeds anytime now. Plant them a 1/2 inch deep and nine inches apart. Thin to 18 inches apart once the plants are growing well.

CANNAS

Often called canna lilies or canna bulbs, cannas are not true lilies nor are they bulbing plants. They’re grown from rhizomes which you can purchase in the summer bulb section of garden centres. I like to start them indoors in mid-spring to get a head start on the growing season. But you can also buy good-sized plants from your local nursery. Canna plants typically grow four to six feet tall and have tropical green to bronze leaves and fiery orange, red, yellow, or pink flowers. Plant them at the centre of a large container or in garden beds. They thrive in a site with full sun, and rich moist soil.

ELEPHANT EARS

Planting elephant ears (Colocasia spp.) in a pot is an easy way to add a tropical vibe to a deck, patio, or balcony. The plants grow three to six feet tall with giant, heart-shaped leaves. Buy and pot up bulbs in mid to late spring or purchase potted plants from your nearby nursery. Elephant ears do best in part sun and in containers that hold at least 15 to 20 gallons of potting mix. There are green-leafed varieties as well as those, like ‘Black Magic’, which have dusky purple foliage. Try them both for an eye-catching colour combination.

Amaranth is one of my go-to annuals for dramatic forms and colours. Lovelies-bleeding is a classic amaranth that forms long chains of burgundy tassels. Elephant Head amaranth produces upright velvety tassels that reach heights up to four to five feet.

With its impressive size and massive leaves, it’s hard to believe castor bean is an annual plant. Plant the seeds or seedlings in sunny garden beds or large containers and water and fertilize regularly.

Cannas are eye-catching plants with showy foliage and tropical coloured blooms. These are grown from rhizomes sold at garden centres in spring. Depending on the variety, cannas grow four to six feet tall.