Here we plant them mostly in September and some in October. They need to get established before the weather cools too much or they languish through the cool season. Al

Donnabaskets,

I grew some of the trailing nasturtiums a couple of years ago and trained them up on an over-sized tomato cage made from concrete re-mesh. Even though they were vines, I had to guide them up and weave them through the squares on the wire cage, because they seemed to have a weak climbing "instinct."

I planted them in-ground around the base of the tomato cage trellis about Memorial day (our "safe" no-frost date.) Here in Maine our Spring, Summer, and Fall served as a "cool season" for the Nasturtiums and they thrived all season. With some guidance from me, they covered the 5-foot "trellis". We used both their fresh flowers and leaves as novel additions to salads, and just sampled them from time to time during the day. They served as a vegetable and as an ornamental.

MM

Al, I tried fall planting, but the nasturtiums and lobelia both died during our week of temps in the teens. The lobelia were already blooming, so that tells me I can easily get a nice show from them in hot weather. Since this was my first time for nasturtiums, I don't know.

MM, my problem is from mid May to early October, our weather is so hot that nasturtiums, pansies, lobelia, snapdragons, larkspur, etc. all die from the heat. Our cool season is from late October to late April. But our frost free date is April 15. That's what I am trying to work out in my head. When is it early enough to plant without the plants freezing (They freeze when it's below 20F), yet late enough that I still have time to get blooms before summer?

Donnabaskets,

If your frost free date is April 15 and it gets too hot for your cool season ornamentals May 15, that gives you only a 30-day "window" in the Spring to enjoy your nasturtiums. To use that window, you would need to have some big nasturtium plants ready to set out April 15th.

That raises the question of a Fall crop. What is your average first frost date in the Fall? It the heat kills your cool weather ornamentals as late as early October, you may have a rather small Fall growing window, as well.

MM

Many of the plants we use as cool season annuals require a longer time to full plant development compared to summer annuals. A small difference in climate can make a lot of difference in what culture will work for these plants.

I live in central Arkansas with a similar climate to that of donnabaskets. Because of our hot summers, many perennials such as delphiniums and poppies, along with the cool annuals, need to be planted in fall. But there are also those that will not survive our winter.

Of the three plants asked about, I have no experience with lobelia, and only limited experience with nasturtiums and calendulas.

Nasturtiums don't survive our winter. And for me an early spring planting has not worked well either. The summer heat seems to sap the plants before they can get well established. I tend to avoid them as difficult for my climate. That said, I have to remark that as a teen some forty years ago, there was a man down the street from me that had beautiful nasturtiums every year that lasted though the hot summer. I should have asked him the particulars to his method, but at the time mostly what I had on my mind was ... girls. Best I can remember the nasturtiums were in a spot that had very little direct sun exposure, but a lot of open sky indirect light. I seem to remember seeing partly decomposed horse manure being used and the pants were watered daily.

Calendulas have a lot in common with nasturtiums; don't survive winter and take too long to develop before the heat of summer. But about 10 years ago I had a very strange thing happen with some fall seeded calendulas.

They were started in flats in September and planted to beds in October. They grew lush and were bitten by the first frost, killed by the first hard freeze.

But I had started more plants than I had used for the bed. These were left in the small cellpacks, the old kind that had 72 to the flat. Left outside, by late November they were completely root bound and stunted as small plants with no active growth.

These cellpacks stayed out all winter and the soil in them froze solid numerous times. At the end of Feb. I chanced to notice that the plants were not dead. I was amazed. So I planted them in a bed. They took off like a rocket in March.

I have as yet not tried to duplicate this method, so it may have been a fluke. But for that one year I had some great looking calendulas. Here is a photo of them inter-planted with pansy and ranuncula.

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Wow! The picture of my dreams! I am realizing that I am going to have to do some experimenting with this. I am thinking I will sow seeds next week and grow them on under lights for a few weeks. Then I will plant them outside in mid to late February. My hope is that by then our coldest weather will be over, and maybe I can use cloches when it's going to frost. The lobelia and nasturtiums I planted in the fall did just fine (though burned a bit) until temperatures fell below 20. That is unlikely once the middle of February is past. I will let you know.

Don't be too hopeful for those spring sown cool annuals. Remember our summers come early and hot.

Do put a note on your garden calendar for late August. Start seed indoors then. And unless you want to mail order seed, you better get it in spring and put in the frig. By July all the local stores will have sent all their seed back.

There is a whole world of things that will grow over our winter; California poppies, hollyhocks, foxglove, all the dianthus/ annual pinks, English daisies, snapdragons. And if your skill level is pretty good try delphiniums and Iceland poppies.

Snapdragons and pinks spill over a raised bed ...

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Yes, I suppose it is perverse of me to want what I can't have....But I'm going to try anyway :) Gorgeous picture! Really gorgeous!