Mistakes To Avoid When Planting Spring Annuals

Planting spring annuals in the garden or containers is an activity most gardeners look forward to with excitement. It's almost a spring ritual: prepping the containers (or maybe getting new ones), purchasing potting soil, and then choosing flats of colorful annuals at the local nursery. However, you should keep in mind a few things to ensure your spring annuals thrive, including avoiding common mistakes with location, watering, drainage, fertilizing, and even how you choose them at the nursery.

Since spring annuals are often planted during the rainy spring season–and heavy rain may drench containers or beds–one mistake gardeners make is placing flowers vulnerable to damage from rain (like pansies and petunias, which have thin, lightweight flowers) in an open location where they're exposed to rainfall. An easy solution is to cover your plants if a heavy storm is coming or place them beneath a sheltered spot that still allows them to get ample sunlight. It's also important to make sure you have proper drainage in plant pots and planting beds to avoid the impact of heavy rain. For beds, loosen the soil and add some amendments before planting to improve drainage (like peat moss or compost), and for containers, make sure they have adequate drainage holes and well-draining soil.

Along these same lines, avoid the mistake of overwatering, which can cause issues like mildew, root rot, or yellowed leaves. Most gardeners water annuals every day, as the shallow roots can dry out quickly. But it can be easy to overwater, so knowing how and how often to water your annuals from spring through summer is crucial.

One disappointing error made while planting spring annuals is choosing unhealthy plants. Nursery plants are often grown from plugs and sold in small sectioned flats, so they may dry out or become soggy from underwatering or overwatering, or they may become root bound. Check the plants you buy to make sure they don't have any mildew or visible pests and that the leaves are healthy and not root bound in their containers. 

Also, don't make the mistake of rejecting a flat of annuals that might have a few dead flowers on them. If they look otherwise healthy, they may just need some gentle deadheading. Cold-hardy spring annuals are kept in heated greenhouses before they're put out for sale in the spring to help them form flowers early, so don't be discouraged if newly planted annuals drop their flowers quickly. After deadheading the spent blooms, new buds should form quickly. Deadheading in the garden is a must for keeping annuals looking fresh and producing new blooms all season long.

A key difference between annual and perennial flowers is that annuals tend to bloom more profusely and for a longer period of time during the growing season. Many long-blooming annuals benefit from a bit of fertilizer to keep them vibrant, yet some gardeners make the mistake of ignoring this helpful maintenance tip.  There are different types of fertilizer suitable for annuals, including water-soluble, granular, and liquid. Using a water-soluble fertilizer is cost-efficient and helps avoid adding too much fertilizer; be sure to follow package directions.