All het up.

I love annuals, and only regret not having planted more of them last growing season. So I'm turning to Graham Rice's Discovering Annuals once again, as I did this time last year, for information, inspiration, and, last but not least, entertainment:

On cleome:

Four petals like the ears of a demented pantomime rabbit stand up from the end of each stem in the head of flowers, with the four thread-like stamens hanging below and a rocket-battery of darker buds standing upright in the top of the spike. The effect is unashamedly exotic.

On godetia:

The satiny sheen on their petals is unrivalled; even on dull days it shimmers and flickers, and as you look into the flower with its slender stamens and divided style, it's as if a ballroom dancer had fallen on her bottom and kicked her legs in the air (allowing for some license in the details of human anatomy).

On lavatera:

The satiny sheen on the petals of a mallow is unique among annuals; sheer and tempting, open to delicate caress, apparently fragile but reassuringly tough -- like a flapper out on a date. Few annuals mix such allure with such easy availability!

On morning glory:

Sorry, I must sit down...it makes me go weak just to think about the silky sheen on those delicate petals...like caressing... . 'Heavenly Blue' ipomoea is essential; no one with a soul can resist it once seen. Like the most captivating of lovers it's not perfect but is nevertheless both irresistible and deeply satisfying -- the perfect combination.

Discovering Annuals. Graham Rice. Timber Press, Inc., 1999. ISBN 0-88192-465-2.