There’s no color in my backyard flower bed or pots yet (unless you count the pictures on the seed packets), but I’m hoping for lots of pinks, purples, yellows, reds and oranges.

In the bottom tier of the three-tier bed are painted daisies and cosmos. They’re expected to grow the tallest, hence the lowest bed. In the middle tier are zinnias and another type of cosmos, one that doesn’t grow quite as tall. In the top layer are California poppies and gazania, a flower I’ve never planted before but looks kind of like daisies, I guess. These are supposed to be the shortest, which is why they went in the top tier.

The pots on each side of the tiered bed are ringed in a flower called aubrieta, which is supposed to stay short and be a really pretty purple. In the middle of each pot are more zinnias, although these are mini-zinnias. In this case, “mini” means 10 to 24 inches tall, according to the packet. I’m hoping for somewhere in the middle.

It’s hard starting with all flower seeds in the backyard. Not only does it make for a longer wait for actual flowers, but also an increased anxiety that enough seeds will actually germinate and go on to produce flowers. Before it gets too hot for them to survive.

Time will tell, right?