A pack of seeds or even a six pack of seedlings is a small price to pay for the chance to try out new colors and ideas. It's a great way for the new gardener to learn design without risking a fortune. And the bare spots in the garden are a wonderful opportunity to do just that. Think of them as learning tools. You played with them, moved them around and arranged them in patterns and colors that pleased you until one day the letters began to make sense and you were suddenly making words and then sentences.
Annuals are the same.
If there is anything outmoded about annuals it is the safe way we tend to use the same cliched plants. Yet there are hundreds of new things to try that are equally easy and infinitely more interesting. Discover a world of annuals that are neither trite nor outmoded at all but rather the door to a new garden adventure. Columnist Linn Mills tells you How to Keep Your Garden Looking Bright With Annuals Read the Detroit News for ways to combine some of the New Annuals for '98 Brush up on Exterior Color Decorating with annuals. Finally, check Garden Guides for advice on planting and maintaining your annuals.