As the ground begins to thaw, all of us in Northern Michigan have that itch to see some green and get some flowers planted! Our favorite plant brand, Proven Winners, releases each year featured flowers of the year. These featured flowers can range from a new color or breed to an old favorite that should be given new life in the upcoming year. With so many new plants and varieties being introduced each year, the annual of the year helps gardeners to pick out a plant from the hundreds that will look stunning in their landscape or container gardens.
What makes an Annual of the Year Champion?
Gardeners and landscapers alike love to incorporate the annual of the year each season in their planting choices for several reasons. In order for a plant to win in this category, it must be both easy to grow and iconic. The plant shouldn’t take a master gardener to grow and it should be very easily recognizable and unique. Along with being easy to care for and beautiful, it should be easy to obtain—meaning a homeowner can walk into their local greenhouse and purchase one. Finally, these champion annuals must thrive in any location—in a hanging basket, a container garden, or sprinkled through a landscape.
What is the 2020 Annual of the Year?
Meet the Diamond Euphorbia! This beautiful annual comes in three different varieties this year—Diamond Snow, Diamond Mountain, and Diamond Frost. These three varieties look quite similar, but they have different applications. The Frost variation is the classic application of Euphorbia—wispy and airy with single flowers that break up heavy blocks of color. The mountain and snow variations are both much more showy—with more dense flowers and grow larger in size! Talk with your landscaper or garden professional to see which is appropriate for your home.
What is so great about the Diamond Euphorbia?
The brilliant white of these plants stand out wherever they are placed. They bloom from Spring to Fall pretty much nonstop, so they keep your planters or baskets looking fresh all season long. While they may look delicate, they are actually extremely tough. They can thrive in both full sun and full shade positions and don’t require any deadheading throughout the season. Flowers will be more dense and plentiful if placed in full sun, however, this plant looks beautiful in shade as well. The Euphorbia is really one of the easiest to care for annuals out there-it doesn’t need special watering or fertilizing and only needs to be pruned or trimmed if you personally would like to do it.
What other flowers would work well in my garden this year?
One of our favorite resources to use provided by Proven Winners is their yearly garden container recipes. They put together a perfect mix of flowers—thrillers, spillers, and fillers—to make your planters look gorgeous. We have included the featured recipes below for you to check out! Blues and purples are very popular this year, but we recommend going with whatever you love the most. We are personally excited for the new color of Lantana (golden) featured below and cannot wait to incorporate that into some of our plantings this Spring!
Incorporating Annuals into Your Space
Many of our clients like to have our team select and install their seasonal flowers. It makes life just simply easier; you don’t have to spend time driving to the local store and then try to pick out the right flowers for the right space in your yard, and you don’t have to spend the time planting them either! Looking to do it yourself? Check out this guide for planting annuals!
Ready to get started on your landscaping project in Grand Traverse or Leelanau County, MI? If so, meet with our team of experts, choose a solution to improve your property, and get ready to sit back, relax, and enjoy your beautiful outdoor space.
Image Source: provenwinners.com
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