Sustainable Summer Color Selections - Sit Down with CEPRA

Annuals are an excellent way of bringing a pop of color throughout your property. They are typically installed in quarterly rotations that follow the seasons. Each season brings with it their own challenges and requires their own practices to ensure the plants thrive. Here, we will be discussing options for selecting annuals for the summer.

While there are many warm season annuals that you can use to bring color into your landscape as the temperatures rise, maintaining them during the summer season in Florida can be quite challenging. The plants experience the relentless summer sun, high humidity and torrential downpours from afternoon thunderstorms that takes its toll on the summer colors sustainability and performance. Choosing the right plants to handle these tough conditions is a must for a successful color display.

Selecting the Right Plant

Summer color can come with flowers or by way of the plant's foliage. Here are a few of our favorites of each:

Flowering Plants

Bush Daisy (Euryops) - This plant provides a yellow daisy like flower color against a mat of appealing finely cut green foliage. It is a tough plant that survives all but the most extreme warm weather conditions including moderate drought.

Penta - There are both taller and dwarf varieties of Penta to choose from that come in an assortment of colors. The Butterfly Series produces large flowers and withstands stressful conditions with excellent performance in the landscape. The "Dwarf Varieties" of Pentas are well branched with a compact habit that form mounds of flowers.

Purslane - There are several good series available. This plant loves tough conditions with showy bright colored flowers. This plant requires a full sun location, are drought tolerant and loves the heat.

Vinca - Enhanced breeding has improved this annual to better survive environmental stresses such as sun, heat, drought, and disease. The Vinca is very well branched and is a heavy blooming plant that comes in an array of colors.

Foliage Plants

Caladiums - There are 2 varieties: Fancy Leaf and Strap Leaf. The Fancy leaf Caladiums tend to be taller and have heart shaped leaves. The Strap leaf Caladiums tend to be more compact and have smaller leaves. All Caladiums can grow in partial to full shade but not all Caladium varieties are full sun tolerant. Make sure you do your research before purchasing.

Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides) - Vegetatively propagated sterile Coleus are extremely durable compared to the seed varieties of Coleus. Most of these varieties can be grown in the sunniest spot in the landscape with wonderful bright colors. The foliage of these plants can come in a solid color and or combination of colors.

Installation and Maintenance

Once you have selected your summer annual color, the installation and maintenance aspects are just as important to ensure a sustainable presentation of color. Soil amendments and a slow-release fertilizer should be added as needed to the flower beds. Once planted, thoroughly water the annuals to eliminate any air pockets and limit drought stress. Regular watering will initially be needed until the seasonal color becomes established. Then, water as needed with an irrigation cycle if the summer rains do not regularly occur.

To ensure the annuals look their best for as long as possible, stay on top of bed weed removal, pinching of the plants, and deadheading of the flowers. By removing the spent blossoms, the plant will focus its energy into creating more flowers rather than seeds. Annuals require the most intensive level of care in landscaping, yet the beautiful results make the effort worthwhile.

Conclusion

From choosing the proper seasonal color selections, to utilizing good bed prep practices and installation methods, getting the most out of your annual flower selections can be made easy with the right steps. "Right plant, right place" is an especially important motto here, so keep the sunlight and moisture conditions of your landscape areas at the front of your mind when shopping for your new annuals. By employing competent maintenance routines, your summer color will flourish all season long.