Team Cold Season Annuals, or Team Done for the Year?

For some of us, cold weather has already set in, but for others, it is still fall and we're thinking about our cool weather annuals. Some gardeners change their landscape throughout the year with annuals suited for the season. Some, however, call it good for the year and don't bother. Let's explore the pros and cons of each and declare a team!

First up: Team Cold Season Annuals. Pansies, ornamental cabbage, sweet peas, snap dragons, and violas. They are being planted with abundance right now in the Southern states. These annuals provide that pop of color that would otherwise be missing in the late fall and winter. This team dedicates the time and resourses to keeping their landscape, containers, and baskets looking good all year by changing out their annual plantings.

Next up: Team Done for the Season. This team relies on the bones of their garden for winter interest, and prefers to let the perennials and maybe reseeding annuals  do the job for them when the warmer weather comes. Planting trays of annuals is a lot of work, and this team would rather do something else, preferring to take time off during the cooler months.

	Every year I have very good intentions of planting those annual flowers for the cool season interest, but every year I manage to find other things to fill my time instead. In my head, I'm Team Seasonal Annual, but in reality it is Team Done for the Year!
	When the cold weather arrives and the wind starts blowing, I start thinking about lettuce, spinach and other cold weather vegetables. All the brassicas, turnips, and the like are wonderful diversions from the summer veggies we've been growing all year. I always miss my tropical plants that hide under the generous layer of mulch, but I satisfy my gardening desires with these winter veggies. I also look forward to the "more than usual" rainfall we get each winter, and that includes growing a healthy stand of wheat and winter rye. I'm Team Cold Season Annuals, for sure!

Over to you: do you add that spark to your landscape, or take the deserved break? Don't forget to show off your plantings if you have them!