Or, OMG! We’re in the March/April issue of Fine Gardening Magazine!

Even though we now sell just as many perennials as annuals here at “Annie’s,” annuals are where we got our start. Easy-to-grow yet increasingly hard-to-find annuals filled the trays in Annie’s backyard nursery 20 years ago, just as they fill the tables of our 2.5 acre urban growing grounds today. Back then, ladies approached Annie with requests for plants they remembered from their grandmother’s gardens, but could no longer find at their local nurseries. She grew them and they flew out the door! Now, the timeless charm and happy-go-lucky ease of these cottage garden favorites are what keeps people coming back year after year.

This garden owes its charm to annuals like wee Eschscholzia caepitosa, Lupinus succulentus 'Rodeo Rose' and Nicotiana alata 'Lime Green.'

So when Fine Gardening asked us if we wanted to write a story about our Top 10 Favorite Annuals, how could we say no? Of course we’re not talking boinky, squatty, run-of-the-mill annuals you can buy in giant stores which shall remain nameless. We mean old-fashioned, hard-working, classic cottage garden annuals that exude charm and pull the garden together. They bring in the bees and hummingbirds and hide the knobby knees of taller perennials, thrilling us with their sparkle and shine. In other words, they’re the annuals we can’t live without!

Our Spring gardens would be incomplete without CA native Nemophila menziesii "Baby Blue Eyes."

Renowned for their profuse bloom, delightful habit and conveniently self-sowing ways, these original varieties are almost impossible to find in many nurseries nowadays. You’ll most likely have to start them from seed unless you order them through our mailorder department or can find small plants offered at local farmer’s markets or plant sales.

Thomas Jefferson grew Polygonum orientale at Monticello and it was first grown in the US in the 1700s.

Of course, annuals are also a little misunderstood. Some people want to know why they should bother planting something “that’s just going to die.” Welllll, we have lots of opinions about that! The annuals we’re talking about don’t just disappear after one season. They’re tried and true, seeding themselves here and there, so you’ll have plenty of FREE plants next year. After hundreds of years of being passed-along and shared, they’re classic cottage annuals for a reason!

"German Catchfly" blooms like crazy and is one of the most cheerful sights in the Summer garden.

Lime-a-licious Nicotiana alata 'Lime Green' combines beautifully with just about anything.

While a massive amount of trendy plants and the latest hybrids come and go each year, old-fashioned favorites like “Love–in–a–Mist,” “Bachelor’s Buttons” and “Kiss–Me–Over–the–Garden–Gate” soldier on in cottage plantings across the globe, appreciated for their resiliency and treasured for the ethereal charm they bring to our gardens. We’re so happy we have a chance to share them with you. Pick up a copy of the March/April issue of Fine Gardening Magazine to get the whole scoop!

Tags: classic cottage garden annuals, Fine Gardening Magazine, reseeding annuals