ANNUALS 105 
Before deciding on annuals for temporary col- 
onies in the hardy garden and borders, get a com- 
prehensive idea of the height and spread of the 
plant; frequently a seed catalogue will give the 
one in print and the other in picture. Thus cosmos 
is very tall and therefore, for the background, 
save when used near a border edge to break a vista, 
though its height may be reduced by the some- 
what reprehensible practice of pinning down the 
plant and letting the side shoots grow perpen- 
dicularly. Low annuals, like Brachycome iberi- 
difolia and godetia, are for the immediate fore- 
ground or very open spaces between perennials 
that are farther to the rear. 
In the placing of annuals among perennials a 
point always to be considered is the freedom with 
which they self-sow and thus become a nuisance 
unless watched very closely. The cornflower, lark- 
spur, coreopsis and Silene armeria are as much of 
a pest as weeds if left entirely to their own way 
of thinking what their share in the population of 
the garden ought to be. These should have the 
blossoms, as they fade, snipped off with scissors 
—not a burdensome task if the planting is not an 
uncommonly large one and the work is done daily. 
Where the planting of a hardy garden or border 
is delayed to afford time for accumulating a stock 
of perennials in the home nursery, annuals may 
serve two excellent purposes at once. Get the 
ground in readiness for its eventual use and then 
devote it to annuals entirely for one, two or three 
