Flowers are a great gift, useful in home decoration or in landscaping. When thinking about what to grow in any certain space, one has a wide array of choices for what kind of flowers would best be planted. Choices many times have to do with when the flowers should bloom and when they will be most appreciated.

Wildflowers, of course, are available in abundance. Gathering and pressing wildflowers is a popular pastime, and for those who live near open fields or other natural places, a bouquet of wildflowers is the easiest way. The bright array of blossoms that can be gathered in the wild require no effort other than finding and picking.

If you are trying to grow flowers in a specific bed, there are many choices, having mostly to do with when the flowers will bloom. A basic choice is between annual flowers, which last only for one growing season, or the hardier perennials, which can grow for years and years if properly cultivated.

Annual flowers can be better for a longer blooming time, for more robust blossoms, and for more micromanaged growing conditions. Perennials in many cases will produce less vivid flowers over a number of years. There are also Biennials, flowers which don't blossom at all the first growing season and die after the second. There are obvious disadvantages to biennials, but for the avid gardener, they remain part of a varied flower bed.

Annuals come in different varieties, and some are more fragile than others. More delicate plants, called 'tender' annuals, are probably more for the advanced gardener and in suitable conditions. Stronger annuals will be more likely to outlast rough soil or handling and other potential problems. Some annuals can withstand the vestiges of frost or stand up to the elements in other ways.

Perennials, then, need to be studied for their blossoming patterns, and for other particular growing conditions. Perhaps the most popular perennial is the rose, grown in thorny bushes. The rose is among the most familiar flowers, used widely in our social rituals, as a gift between lovers or friends, and enjoyed as the subject of classic poetry and literature. Rose bushes are tenacious and with the right conditions can provide lasting enjoyment in your yard or garden.

The gardener will want to look at growing conditions, as also at color schemes, to create a vivid and eye-catching garden. Consider whether the plants will be needed only for a season, or whether they should last into future years, growing along with their tenders. In any case, a lively crop of blooming beauties will enable the gardener to do as the florists suggest: Say it with Flowers.

By: Alan Jason Smith