Why dont annuals come back?

Question

I dont understand why perrinials come back and annuals dont. The annuals have seeds dont they? Why dont they fall into the ground and replant themselves?

Answer 1

Many do. Cosmos and zinnias are two that come back well for me.

Why they don't all come back goes to the original homeland for the annual. Some may be from areas that have very little winter cold, have rain instead of snow for winter moisture, or may have little or no winter moisture. These impact the seed. For a seed to germinate the next year, inhibiting chemicals within the seed must be eliminated. This may be done by moisture, cold or other factors. If your garden climate doesn't fit, then the seeds that fall won't germinate.

And let's not forget predators who come along and eat the seed....birds or mice for example.

You can experiment with annuals, let them dispurse their seed naturally or collect the seed. Most seed will grow again if stored in a cool, dry environmnet and sown at the right time. However, some need those special conditions mentioned above. There are books on seed germination that define what is needed.

Perennial and biennials come back because they have developed a way to store food over winter (or over summer as in desert plants). For example tubers, crowns, bulbs.

Answer 2

Some annuals will reseed themselves. . . if you are lucky. Perrenials do come back because they can take the weather in your area. The bulb or root system under the ground can take the cold weather where you are at and come back in the spring. If you get a plant labeled as an annual, it will most likely not come back because the cold weather will kill the plant and seeds. However, some seeds may survive if you are lucky enough that the seeds are kept warm enough. If you want, you can collect the seeds before the cold weather sets in and keep them and start your own seeds in the spring and plant them after the last frost in your area.

Answer 3

Annuals are not equipped to handle overwintering. There are annuals (like lantana) that are perennial in mild climates, but they are an annual where I live. Many annuals self do seed (like celosia, vinca and portulaca), but since the plant comes up from seed the next year, it's not a perennial.

Perennials have a root or tuber that remains alive underground over winter.. Annuals don't generally have this kind of a root system.

Further, many annuals only live for one season, even in climate friendly areas. They just grow to seed and exhaust themselves.. and die back. Many vegetable plants are that way as well.

Answer 4

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Answer 5

Annuals are fast growing, and have evolved to set seed for the following generation. Many of our garden annuals have their origins in habitats that demand rapid growth and seed production. Deserts, dry grassland, nutrient poor soils, barren terrain etc, where seasons are brief, food levels are low, water is scarce, and seeds have a greater chance of survival than perennial root systems. If you select the correct plants to suit YOUR CONDITIONS, you can have annuals self-seeding to the point of nuisance. Some annuals that seed freely and worth trying are, Larkspur, Calendula, most Poppies, Linaria, Allysum, Godetia, Antirrhinums, Nigella.

Answer 6

Some require a large bed to already exist for seeds to work. Others need a much warmer climate to come back as a bed. Keep experimenting. Enjoy!

Answer 7

Sometimes annuals do re-seed themselves, however it's not very often that the seedlings come back. They typically don't 'self-sow' their seeds though.
Sometimes it has to do with the weather. Certain plants are not very heat tolerant, ande some are not cold tolerant.

Answer 8

some annuals do come back, but after they self sow. others do not come back and that is due to the extreem temperature change from winter to fall. try keeping an annual indoors. it will life very long. if you have an annual that you want to keep try useing cuttings of the plant to propogate them.

Answer 9

BECAUSE THEY ARE ANNUALS,for the lamens that means they live a one year life cycle from seed to seed in one growing season. perennials develop root systems which they store nutrients in to sustain them over dormant periods.

Answer 10

Annuals only come up once and then they are done. Perrenials are the type of flowers that come back ever year.