Green in the Winter

Well, I've shared in several posts about the front beds that bloomed well into the fall and stayed green even after!

The front border at the end of November:

 In mid-December:

And in mid-January:

As mentioned, I had finally gotten in and cleared out the cannas and other bulbs along with various other dead-things-fall-clean-up-that-actually-happened-in-winter.

And so it looks respectably normal for winter - the evergreens staying green, the mums never making it more than a week (so I'm 0 for 2 two years in a row. Think I'm giving up on them and putting the pots to better use), the cilantro thriving, but then of course this year's there's the very not-normal green of snapdragons.

So I research snapdragons because, what the heck?! Are they an annual or not?

Ok, according to gardeningknowhow.com, they are actually considered a short-lived perennial. Huh.

(Dear nursery: why you label as annual?)

Note the other thing I highlighted. Accidental gardener gets mighty nervous when "a little preparation" is mentioned (although keep in mind my new theory about instructions to gardeners).

And then there's this excerpt:

Hot summers, check. Mild winters...uh, actually depending on the year, no, not really at all.

Supposedly they bloom in spring and fall only. 

Or try all spring, summer and fall...or is that just mine...?

And then what's that part about foliage dying back and plants "melt[ing] into the ground"??

Take a look at the photos above...no melting. Snowed on and frozen and drenched, yes. But not melting.

Ok, so in theory, after my plants melt into the ground, they will come back in the spring if I mulch. Eh. Mulch isn't my thing, so sorry, guys. Guess I could put down some compost. But composting in my front yard scares me now.

And then I go on to read these little highlighted gems...

Uh oooohhhhhhhhh.

Haven't you always wanted a snapdragon border?! :-D

So, what a spring it shall be! Can't wait to see what it holds.