The colorful annuals that filled our flower beds, 40 pots and one window box just a few months ago seem like a distant memory with the recent damp, cold days and overcast skies.  I miss the lantana and the datura, the cosmos and the zinnias, the dragon-wing begonias and the petunias.  But with the arrival of four—yes four—seed catalogs this week, there are plenty of possibilities to ponder before the order forms are completed and the checks are signed.  So many annuals to choose from that I’m reminded of this little passage from Richardson Wright’s 1922 book, “Truly Rural”:

“Before starting to raise annuals one should consult an actuary’s chart to determine approximately how long he has to live.  He may also strike an average of the longevity of his family.  Figuring on this basis, I calculated that there remained forty years to me, barring automobile accidents, plague, and canned salmon.  I could raise annuals for forty years.  And since there were about ten hundred and eighty-two different varieties of annuals that I would like to try, I could plan to devote my time to twenty-seven of them each year.  When I finished the entire ten hundred and eighty-two, I would know something about annuals.  This would bring me past eighty, after which I could just raise my favorites.” 

Amen!

—Nina Koziol