The Best Summer Annual Flower Bed

Sunny Locations

• Sunny flower bed locations are perfect for a number of vibrant colored annual plants, so in planning your flower garden you will need to decide if you want your flowers to be of a particular color palette. For example, a striking sunny flower bed in cool colors of blues, purples, lavenders, and pinks can contain petunias, sweet alyssum, heliotrope, spider flower and bachelor buttons. A warm tone and very colorful palette may have zinnias, snapdragons, cosmos, marigolds and moss rose growing in your sunny location. Choosing a color scheme for full sun flower beds will be visually appealing and dynamic.

Shade Locations

• Unless you select appropriate flowering plants that thrive in shaded areas, your shade flower bed will look lanky with few flowers. Fortunately, there are several showy flowering plants that are perfect for flower beds that are in shade throughout the day. Impatiens in bright colors of white, pinks, reds, orange, lavender and purple, begonias in rich hues of reds, pinks, yellows, orange and white, and pansies are well known for their high shade tolerance. Add extra color and variety to your shade flower bed with the bright colored foliage of caladium and coleus plants.

Partial Sun/Shade Locations

• If you are fortunate to have your flower bed located where it receives part sun and part shade during the day, your selection of flowering plants is vast. Almost every flowering plant that thrives in full sun will grow well in partial sun, particularly when receiving at least six hours of sun a day. Select a color palette, then decide whether you want a formal, symmetrical appearance to your flower bed, or a more random, old fashioned-looking display. For taller flowering plants, select annual toadflax, cosmos, blue salvia and snapdragons. Mid-size and short annual flowers, like petunias, geraniums, marigolds and verbena, should be planted in front of tall plants.