Annuals & Perennials

I decided to keep it pretty broad with flowers, and put the two together. No homestead is complete without both, so it’s best to experiment with growing as many as you can!

An annual is a plant that completes it’s life cycle, from germination to production of seeds, in one season, and then dies. There are also biennials, that have a two year life cycle, and be sure to plant your garden accordingly. Annuals produce the most blooms for a longer period of time, they will remain open from spring to the first frost. These plants are rarely expensive, and are actually quite affordable so be sure to add them to your landscape, not to mention in and around your garden. Annuals like marigolds are incredibly beneficial to the garden and homestead environment as a whole, bringing in beneficial insects and pollinators, as well as being pungent enough to keep away bad bugs or harmful pests. Nasturtiums are another annual, and beneficial to the garden as an excellent sidekick to grow right in with your cucumbers. Do a little research on companion planting, and learn which flowers and blooms pair well with your fruits and vegetables.

Perennials are plants that live longer than two years, and bloom for a single season. Either spring, summer, or fall, but never all three. They are much less maintenance than annuals, as they come back every year bigger and better. There is a common rule of thumb when it comes to perennials in the garden…

“The first year they sleep. The second year they creep. The third year they leap!”

This is important to remember, and not to get discouraged waiting for your perennials to fill in and bloom like you expect them to. Just be patient, and trust me when I say, it is well worth the wait! Those first two years are spent establishing a healthy root system, and they just fill in more and more each year after that. Be sure to follow the directions on the package of whatever you are planting. Root clusters, and bulbs need to be planted at different depths and should be planted in the early spring or late fall. Perennials also bloom at different times throughout the season, so you’ll want to fill in your garden beds with a variety in order to have flowers that are always open.

Eventually over time, your perennials will have produced enough for you to split, or divide them. Bulbs, clusters, and rhizomes can all be dug up, and replanted, make sure you do a little research to see what time of year is best. You can share with others, or plant more in another part of your yard of whatever it is you have in abundance.