Best *WHITE* annuals to direct sow

Hi all :) Is it weird to already be thinking of next summer??? :) There are spaces here and there that I'm just not very pleased with this year. I need to fill them in, but I'd like to try direct sowing some things I've not grown before. Any sizes.

I would love to hear (and see pics if you have them!) about your favorite *white* annuals to direct sow. I'm in zone 6b :)

Thanks!
Jacci :)

Jacci,
here are few off the top of my head:
nicotiana
alyssum
petunia
marigold
hollyhock
vinca
cleome
zinnia
cosmos
impatiens
larkspur
delphinium
foxglove
carnation
dianthus
morning glory
moonvine

This message was edited Jun 18, 2006 1:36 AM

If you're interested in something a little off the beaten path, you might want to try Schizopetalons. Mine haven't bloomed yet this year, so I don't have a picture, but they are really nice plants for the front border of an annual bed. They also emit a perfume at night time that smells kind of like cherries or pistachio ice cream. Kind of an odd plant that is showing up in more and more seed catalogs. They need to be direct sown too, because they hate having their roots disturbed.

-Greg

Photo: http://alba.web.infoseek.co.jp/whiteseason/schizopetalon_walkerii.jpg

Oooh, those are great fun, Greg :) Thanks!!!

Berrygirl, can all of the ones you listed above be direct sown? Thanks for the list :)

Jacci

No, it's not weird to be thinking of next summer already, Jacci, provided you are a new car dealer!LOL!

Actually, Jacci, I think good, avid gardeners are ALWAYS thinking ahead. They think about how they could do things better, or they see something they'd like to try they haven't planted before, or they're dreaming about this, that or the other...

I planted Tupelo trees in the wet part of my backyard last year, and I am always thinking years ahead now to when they will finally bloom and I can smell their fragrance!

I also planted Japanese Wisteria vines next to some soft Maple trees, and I'm looking years ahead to when the vines will have climbed 20 or 30 feet and be showering the branches with 18 to 36 inch long racemes of delightfully gorgeous, deliciously fragrant flowers!

Jacci,
Yes, I believe they all can be direct sown.

This is a shorter annual:
http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/65131/index.html

But for a salvia it has a clear white color, unlike some of the mealy sages, and retains that color until the bloom falls off. The height, for me, has only been about 24"...don't know if this is the height you are looking for.
Debbie

I once had great success with Cosmos bipinnatus "White Sonata". I repeat, ONCE. Ever since then I have been trying to grow this plant with abysmal results. Right now I have five plants which have been about 4 inches tall for almost 2 months. What am I doing wrong?

I've grown them successfully in the past too but haven't tried again. Are they in the same bed? Nice thing about Cosmos is that they don't seem to be 'daylength related' in their blooming so they bloom right up to frost here.