Perennial Plants and Annuals Have Different Life Spans

Anannualis a plant that is grown for a single season. The term includes plants that complete their life cycle, flower, and produce seeds within a growing season; an example is marigold or a corn plant.

The term annual also includes tender perennials, plants that live for years in climates where there is no frost, but die wherever freezing occurs, an example is the geranium.

These plants can be brought indoors through the winter and replanted outdoors the next summer. Some plants are said to be half hardy, that is they will survive light freezing, at least their roots survive and can regenerate the plant. An example is the gerbera daisy.

Annuals are often reproduced by planting their seeds. They are also available as small plants ready for transplanting in the spring. They can be purchased at garden centers as individual plants or inexpensively in six packs. Many more varieties and colors are available through mail order seed companies.

Perennials are grown for several seasons.

A perennial is a plant that survives more than two seasons. It is generally grown as a nearly permanent fixture in a garden and typically grows as a clump that expands outward through time, bearded iris is an example. Perennials often die back to the roots in winter.

Whether a plant is a perennial in a particular area depends on the local climate. The length and severity of the winter is the prime factor, particularly how deep the ground freezes.

New perennials are typically made by dividing the clumps though some grow easily from seeds. Dividing clumps creates new plants and helps keep the old clump growing and flowering vigorously.

Perennials can be obtained from garden centers and by mail order. Choose the species, variety and color carefully since they are more expensive than annuals and are replaced less often.

Most perennials have fairly short bloom seasons, typically two to four weeks. It is common practice to grow annuals and perennials together to provide color throughout the growing season. Growing a variety of perennials with different blooming seasons is another strategy to provide continuous interest in the garden.

Biennials take two years to complete their life cycles.Typically, they do not flower and produce seeds until the second year. They are not as common in the garden as annuals or perennials, an example is the carrot plant which grows its root the first year and flowers and produces seeds the second.

An easy trick to remember the difference between annuals and perennials is to recall that school annuals are for one school season.