CHAPTER XI
Some Favorite Annuals

A few Annuals may well be added to these lists. Even though Annuals must be planted every Spring, there are many worth the trouble; in fact, a garden would look lonesome without some of the old favorites.

A very convenient arrangement is to give one bed in the vegetable garden to the starting of Annuals.

The plants may be moved, when some size, to the hardy garden, near the place of some of the Perennials which die down; for instance, hyacinths, tulips, and other bulbs. Indeed, those having short roots may be placed directly over the bulbs after their leaves have withered and dried.

A border of low-growing Annuals along the vegetable beds makes the vegetable garden a place of beauty.

If you live where there is snow in Winter, in order to have early Summer blooms, the seeds must be started early, under glass protection, in a sunny window, or in a hotbed. A box with a glass cover is a good substitute for a hotbed. If the seeds of Annuals are planted out of doors, they rarely bloom before Mid-Summer, while many Perennials, which have been out all Winter, bloom in early Spring. Select from the following lists the flowers which from the description are most pleasing to you.

List of Fifteen Annuals

(All may be raised from seeds. They do not “winter over.”)
Common Name.      Botanical Name.      Remarks.      Height.     
Cockscomb.*
Cin-e-ra-ri-a.
Crimson, showy flowers easily grown. Resemble the comb of a rooster.
Bloom in the Fall.
 24 inches.
Princess Feather.
Feathered Coxcomb.
Ce-lo-si-a Plu-mo-sa.
Yellow and crimson, feathering spikes of bloom.
Easily raised. Large-flowering Dwarf are the best seeds to plant.
About 2½ feet.
Youth-and-Old-Age.*
Zin-ni-as.
All brilliant colors.
Bloom late in Fall.
2 feet.
Mad Wort.*
Sweet A-lys-sum.
Charming edging plant. Tiny white thick flower heads.
Buy “Little Gem.”
4 inches.
Wild Cucumber Vine.
 
A rapid Annual Climber.
  
Floss Flower.
A-ger-a-tum.
Blooms from early Summer to late Fall.
Buy “Blue Perfection;” small blue flossy flowers which grow in thick clusters. Excellent for blue among cut flowers.
12-15 inches.
Snapdragon* (“Biennial” plants).
An-tir-rhi-num.
Resemble sweet peas, but are easily cared for; need no trellis or support. Excellent for cutting, having stout stems. Sow in February or March in seed-boxes. Bloom from July to November. Best variety; large Flowering Half Dwarf.
Colors: garnet, red, rose, pink, copper, orange, yellow, white. Plants sometimes sow their own seed for next season.
 18 inches.
Scarlet Sage.
Sal-vi-a Splen-dens.
Brilliant red bloom from Summer through Fall. Too harsh a shade for a border plant. Use only in a mass in the garden.
24 in.
Cornflowers.*
Cen-tau-re-a Cy-an-us.
Sometimes called: “Bachelor’s Buttons,” “Blue Bottle,” “Ragged Robin.”
Buy “Double Blue” variety.
15 inches.
Nasturtiums.
 
Orange, yellow, salmon color.
Buy “Dwarf” variety.
Excellent for edging.
There is a tall growing variety which clings to a support, or “climbs.”
10 inches.
Cosmos.
  
See Garden for Little Folks for description.
  
Verbenas.
  
Buy sweet-scented verbenas which come in red, rose, pink, purple, lavender, white.
18-24 inches.
Four-o’Clocks.
Mi-rab-i-lis Jal-ap-a.
Do well everywhere.
Mixed colors. Give each plant twelve inches of room. Interesting because often visited by humming birds.
2 feet.
Mourning Bride.
Pincushion Flower.
Sca-bi-o-sa.
    
* If garden space is small, select only the names marked with a star.
Note: For description of Sweet Peas, see page 356.

Our grandmothers loved also lady slippers, heliotrope, mignonette; but the perennial flowers have taken the place of many old-fashioned Annuals because they require less care.

Among the most interesting Annuals are—

Everlasting Flowers

which may be dried and will keep their color for years. They make charming winter decorations for the table. There are several varieties.

Do not try all of the varieties named, but select from the descriptions the one or two which would be most pleasing to you.

Common Name. Different Varieties.      Height.     
Everlasting Flowers or “Imortelles” (pronounced im-mor-tél).
A-cro-lin-i-um. Pretty white and rosy-pink while in the bud state.
 15 inches.
Hel-i-chry-sum (Strawflower). One of the 30 inches. best “Everlasting” flowers. Plant 12 inches apart. Mixed colors.
Xer-an-the-um. One of the prettiest of “Everlastings.” Purple, white, rose.
30 inches.
Globe Am-a-ranth (Bachelor’s Buttons). Resemble clover heads in white and purple.
12 inches.
* If garden space is small, select only the names marked with a star.

In drying “Everlasting” Flowers, make a paper flower holder in the following manner:

Paper Flower Holder

1. Cut a large square from a heavy piece of paper. Eight inches is a good size.

2. Fold the paper across four times, as shown by the dotted lines in figures 1, 2, 3, 4.

3. Cut along dotted line A-B, figure 5.

4. Open to form figure 6. Clip a tiny piece off the point, and clip along the edges as shown.

5. Spread the paper open. Set it over the mouth of deep vase or jar, and let the stems of the “Everlastings” hang full length through the little openings cut in the holder until dried. This method of dried Everlasting flowers gives long straight stems.

“Some list, that,” said Billy at length, “and we haven’t yet thought of what we will plant in the

VEGETABLE GARDEN

See Chapter LVIII, “Some Hints on Growing Vegetables.”