Plant annuals in Buffalo in April! New series available

by Connie Oswald Stofko

A new frost-tolerant annual called Inticancha will be available at Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses in Williamsville.

“You can put it out in mid-April in containers or even in ground beds,” said Mark Yadon, vice president of Mischler’s Florist and Greenhouses. “It’s nice to get that kind of color a month ahead of time.

“It’s nice to extend the gardening season, too. Here in Buffalo, that’s kind of important.”

The Inticancha series is a dwarf alstromeria that grows between 12 and 24 inches tall. While pot alstomeria have been grown for a few years, this is a new series.

“It’s compact and very floriferous,” Yadon said. “It’s just a dense ball of color.”

With Easter as late as it is this year (April 24), he notes that the Inticancha will make a good gift plant.

“You can have it inside, then put it outside,” he said.

Mischler’s will have Inticancha available in 7 1/2-inch pots and in mixed containers. The plants need sun to part shade and should be spaced 18 inches apart.

Mischler’s is growing four colors: white pink blush, sunlight (yellow), purple and dark purple.

Mischler’s will start selling frost tolerant plants the first two weeks of April.

“The list of frost tolerant annuals has gotten bigger and bigger every year,” Yadon said. “You don’t have to worry about frost or snow on them. When we use them in containers, we actually guarantee that if they’re damaged or die because of the cold, we’ll replace them.”

Frost tolerant annuals grow through the summer.

“They may go out of flower a bit in the middle of the summer, but the heat won’t kill them,” Yadon said. They continue to flourish into the autumn.

Yadon noted that Mischler’s planted window boxes for their building last year on April 15. The plants grew throughout the summer. When the boxes were taken down a week before Thanksgiving, the plants were still flowering.

“They’re a great value,” he said.

Here are two lists of frost-tolerant annuals from Mischler’s organized in different ways to help you find what you are looking for.

NAME

GROWING HABIT

COLOR

Bidens	trailing	yellow
Calibrachoea	trailing	white, pink, red, orange, yellow, blue, purple
Lamium	trailing	dark green and silver w/pink flowers
Patio Verbena	trailing	white, pink, red, purple
Phlox	trailing	white, pink, purple
Creeping Jenny	trailing	light green (non-flowering accent plant)
Nemisia, Diashia	trailing or compact	small white, pink, purple
Petunia	trailing or compact	white, pink, red, blue, purple
Gaura	compact, upright	pink
Pansy	compact	white, red, yellow, orange, light blue, dark blue, purple
Viola	compact	yellow, orange, purple
Dusty Miller	compact, upright	silver (non-flowering accent plant)
Argeranthemum	upright	white, pink, orange, yellow, purple
Osteospermem Daisy	upright	white, pink, orange, yellow, purple
Salvia	upright	pink, red, orange, yellow
Carex	upright, grass	orange, bronze (non-flowering accent plant)

Thriller, Filler and Spiller List

CENTER HEIGHT

 

CAREX  ORANGE SEDGE

CAREX BROWN SEDGE

CAREX BOWELS GOLDEN

PERENIAL GRASSES

SALVIA BLACK AND BLUE

AGYRANTHEMUM DAISY (MARGERETE DAISY)

EURYOPS-MARGARITA AMARILLA

GUARA

TRAILING PLANTS

VIOLINA TRAILING VIOLAS

CALIBRACHOA (MILLION BELLS)

LAMIUM

DIASCIA

PHLOX

PETUNIA (WITHOUT VEINS)

VERBENA

BIDENS-DIOSA DORADA

LYSAMACHIA-CREEPING JENNY

VOLUMINOUS, FLOWERING

PRIMROSE

PANSY

OSTEOSPERMUM DAISY

NEMESIA

DIANTHUS

ACCENT FOLIAGE

HEUCHERA

SEDUM

DUSTY MILLER