yardener logo - click to go to home page
Yardener's Advisor Newsletter: Sign In / Subscribe


Search Yardener

  • Home
  • Find Info
    • Plant Helper
    • Plant And Pest Problem Solver
    • Toolshed of Products
    • Buy Books And Videos By Jeff Ball
    • Watch Yardening Videos By Jeff Ball
    • Nancy's Blog
    • About Us
  • Ask Nancy! (Free Q&A)
    • Ask A Question For Free!
    • View A List Of Answered Questions
  • Free Monthly Newsletter Subscription!
    • Sign Up
    • About
  • Free Videos
  • Want To Help Us?

    • 1) Donate Via PayPal
    • 2) Share This
  • Looking For Products?
    • 1) Shop At amazon.com logo

Home Page > Yardener's Plant Helper > Landscape Plant Files > Files About Flowers > Flowers, Annuals > Petunias

Petunias

Ball Horticulture, 2003
Pink Wave Petunias

Petunias are a favorite flower for residential yards and gardens. Typical of annual flowers, they provide jaunty color during the long growing season and require little care in return. Garden petunias come in over 200 different hybrid versions in a wide variety of colors and shapes.

Petunias are called annuals because their roots are not able to withstand the cold winters in the North and they are killed by hard frost when it arrives at the end of the season. However, better than many more tender annuals, they are able to handle some chill, especially if they are located near a stone or brick wall which retains some heat after a sunny day. They may bloom sparsely after a light frost and enjoy a bit of Indian summer in the late fall.

Description of Petunias
Size: There are hundreds of petunia hybrids and they are usually organized by the size of the blossom. The size of these plants can range from 6 inches tall up to two feet tall depending on the particular variety. Some have trailing or cascading forms that grow along the ground or hang over the edge of a container rather than grow upright.

Foliage: Petunia foliage is pale to medium green. Individual leaves are soft and hairy. They are shaped like elongated ovals with rounded or slightly pointed tips and smooth edges. They may be from 2 to 4 inches long and 3/4 to 1 inch wide. Sometimes they are a little sticky. They grow along the lower stems in an alternating pattern, but as they reach the tips they tend to grow opposite each other.


Flowers: While the traditional familiar petunia blossom is single and shaped like a trumpet with smooth or fluted petals, modern hybrids feature double flowers, as well as ruffled and fringed ones. Various types of petunias have blossoms from 2 to 7 inches in diameter.

Grandifloras have either single or double flowers 4 to 5 inches across. These blooms can be messed up with heavy rain. Multifloras have smaller flowers coming in at about 2 inches across. These are much more resistant to weather damage. Then there are multifloras with smaller 1 inch to 1 1/2 inch blooms. Finally, there are “groundcover” petunias with 1 to 2 inch blooms. These include the very popular ‘Wave’ and ‘Surfinia’ series.

Petunias come in red, shades of pink, scarlet, purple, many shades of blue, yellow, white, orange, and lavender. Some are bicolored, having stripes and veins with darker or contrasting colors. While all are not noted for their fragrance, some kinds of petunias--especially purple, rose, and blue ones-- have a pleasant, light cinnamon scent.

  • read more:
  • Design Ideas for Petunias
  • Caring For Petunias
  • Solving Petunia Problems


Do you have a gardening question? Ask Nancy



Our Privacy Policy       Contact Us

©2003-2021 Yardener.com, All Rights Reserved
YARDENER is a registered service mark
copyright material is protected by copyscape.com, do not copy our content without permission