Thank you Annie!

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Long-time readers of this blog already know that I love to tuck in a few annuals here and there in my garden when spring comes. And they also know that in contrast to my talented friend Ms. Country Mouse, I'm a hit-and-miss propagator. So I usually celebrate Christmas in April and gift myself a nice package (or two) of Annies' California Natives.


This year, my seedlings have been especially challenged. The first batch dried out (I really did thing the rainy season has started, but it hadn't. The second batch looks as if it might perish in the heat. Or maybe a few plants will pull through.

Imagine my delight when Annie's Catalog arrived a few weeks ago and I found that almost half of the plants in that particular catalog was California Natives! And, not to be missed, she also has a California Natives slide show here.



I haven't quite decided yet whether I'll drive over this year or whether I'll mail order again. Actually, I'm hoping to start by picking up a few little treasures at the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, which is just a few weeks away (March 21-25, in San Mateo).

In  the meantime, I'll sleep much better knowing that Annie has done the propagation work already, so if I want some pretty, colorful accents to my garden this spring, I can just order a box (or drive over to Richmond). Thank you Annie!

Comments

Kaveh Maguire said…
I can't wait for my Annie's native annuals to bloom. I bought tons of baby blue eyes, meadow foam, tidy tips, cream cups, Clarkias, and California poppies and lots of other cool things. I started Gilia tricolor and Nemophila 'Penny Black' from seed and the seedlings have been potted up and are coming along nicely. I just wish we had proper winter rains to get them nice and established. Their really isn't much left of the rainy season. I fear it is passing us by this year.
March 4, 2012 at 9:45 PM
Susan Taylor Brown said…
I do love Annie's! I usually do the mail order and have a great success rate with the plants she sends.
March 4, 2012 at 10:17 PM
Country Mouse said…
I should sprinkle seeds around that I've collected and see if any survive or if I just make the birds happy. I did plant a bunch of purple chalice clarkia today from the greenhouse mob. I hope they thrive because if they do then next year will be stunning in various parts of the garden! That slide show is something else - fantastic!

Yes, the show is fast coming up - so soon, I can't believe it!
March 4, 2012 at 10:24 PM
Eliza @ Appalachian Feet said…
Annie's is one of those catalogs that makes me wish west coast plants liked my hot, humid garden! Glad you found some replacements. :)
March 4, 2012 at 10:38 PM
Brent said…
What synchronicity. I just placed my first order with Annie's. I recall that your report last year on the whole purchase and ship process was glowing, so that gave me confidence to give into the beautiful photos.
March 5, 2012 at 9:38 AM
Curbstone Valley Farm said…
I love Annie's, always such a great assortment of natives. I have some Asclepias speciosa in the greenhouse from Annie's that I picked up last fall (I'd been trying to find some for a long time). I'm glad I was too busy to transplant them earlier though, or like your early seedlings I fear they may have dried out too much. I'm getting quite concerned about our significant lack of rainfall this season, and with this warm weather over the weekend, I actually need to water a few things today!
March 5, 2012 at 9:53 AM
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