Annuals for Raised Flower Bed - East Facing...need inexpensive, hearty annuals. Suggestions please!?

Thanks in advance!





I have an East facing raised flower bed at the front of our house. Two years in a row I have planted snapdragons and impatiens. Both years, I have had to replace some of the plants because they have wilted and died. Maybe they got too cold or I didn't water enough initially? Not sure. Anyway, last year I replaced the ones that had died. This year there are so many that I'm thinking about taking out the snapdragons and impatiens and starting fresh.





So, does anyone have any suggestions for annuals in an east facing bed that are


-hearty


- take over the space and


- is inexpensive (my husband will not be pleased that I am buying *more* plants!).





The plants need to like partial shade, it doesn't get overly hot in that part of the house. I just want something to fill the space - would there even be something just green?





Anyway, thanks for any help!

Annuals for Raised Flower Bed - East Facing...need inexpensive, hearty annuals. Suggestions please!?
Unless you figure out why your plants are dying it won't matter what you select. Impatiens and snapdragons are among the easiest and most forgiving of annuals and it sounds as if they are good choices for your sun exposure. That leads me to believe that you have a larger problem. When you water do you just sprinkle over the surface or do you give it a good soaking, so that the water can truly penetrate? Many people think that they have watered when in fact they have only moistened the surface. That leads to weak and stressed plants with most of their roots near the surface. Conversely, if your raised beds drain poorly, or not at all you might be overwatering, though with impatiens that is rarely a problem. Have you added any fresh soil in the past couple years? You might have hard, compacted dirt that makes it even more difficult for the plants to settle into. I would look beyond the plants themselves and try to figure out what is causing their failure. One plant that I will suggest, because it enjoys the same conditions as impatiens and looks lovely with it, is annual salvia. It comes in a wide range of colors, is more drought tolerant than impatiens, and blooms just as long and vigorously.


I wish you all the best of luck.
Reply:Hostas. You can get several different varities and you would have green up until winter (they will die back but come back up early spring) Summer time you will have the flowers. Some have white, some purple. I have hostas growing in all my shady beds and the varigated varieties can take sun too.


You and your husband would be happy. Plant a few and in a year or so you can divide them and have more.


~smiles~
Reply:pansies are really cheap and you can get hundreds of different colours. They grow fast and are really easy to take care of.
Reply:Marigolds. Buy the seeds and grow them yourself..they grow very quickly and they will flower until frost.
Reply:Petunias are hardy, bloom all summer and need little care. Not too expensive either.