I have some seeds I gathered from Profusion Cherry Zinnias in my yard last year, but I hear they may not come true to color from seed (I may try anyway). I also have perhaps a thousand seeds off of some nice French Marigolds I've grown for a few years, and I will include them in the beds, but I don't want too much orange, so they can't be dominant.

I don't really like the ball-shaped marigolds or zinnias, so I'd prefer some flowers with more simple shapes. Daisies are good, so I could use African daisies (dimorphotheca) as part of it, but again, some of those are orange. How about some yellows, whites, pinks, reds, and purples? Any great ideas?

Steve

Most of these are cool-season annuals, though, and won't keep going through a hot summer, although the morning glories will be happy to. I did some lovely moonflowers via direct-sowed seed once in a hot climate, though. Wow, they smelled good. But they only bloom at night.

I have a lot of self-sowing California poppies in one of the beds, and the seedlings are all over the place (so much so that I'll need to thin out what's out there). I know I was not enthusiastic about orange in my first post, but I do like the color of Calif. poppies; perhaps they have a little more gold in them.

So, if my focus is on summer annuals, it looks like some of the suggestions above won't work very well. Are Calendulas cool season plants, too?

Any more ideas for medium and short flowers? Like 6-12" tall? Some yellows, purples, or pinks? Ones that will flower all summer and be quick to bloom from an early May sowing?

Thanks!
Steve

As far as Profussion Zinnia, I recieved some harvested Pink Profussion in trade. The ones I wintersowed all came true! We see what happens from the seed I harvested this year :D

Steve