Self-seeding annuals are a frugal gardener’s dream: they come back year after year with no cost to you! But, you have to enjoy a “wild” or “cottage” garden garden, and you have to take care of them.

Prepping the bed
Pick a spot that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day, since most self-seeders like sun. Make sure it gets enough water, either rain or watering. Your garden bed has to be full of rich, nutritious, and fluffy soil. Why fluffy? It has to be lightweight or else the seeds won’t be able to germinate! Clay soil needs to be heavily amended or replaced. Adding top dressings of compost and fertilizer is a fabulous thing to do every year, but NO mulch. Mulch keeps weeds out of the garden by smothering weed seeds–you don’t want your seeds to be smothered, too!

Maintenance of the Self-Seeders
Don’t “dead-head” flowers: you have to allow them to go to seed! In the Fall, once the seed-heads are all dry and mature, you can help them along by spreading the seeds where you want them to grow the following year. In the Spring, you can transplant plants that have come up in the “wrong” place. But, remember, one of the “charms” of this type of garden is that it is carefree, and looks different every year. Don’t get carried away with moving plants–not all of them survive, and it’s too much work.

The Plants
Pick plants that are right for your climate! Find your USDA Zone and stick to it. You’re trying to have an easy garden, not pamper plants that don’t do well. Look around and see what neighbors have. Here are some self-seeders that do well (but remember, check your zone!):
Cosmos, Zinnias, Poppies, Coreopsis, Salvia, Celosia, Cleome, Daisies (Shasta and Black-foot), Amaranths (Joseph’s Coat and Love-Lies-Bleeding), Flowering Tobacco (Nicotiana), Blanketflower (Gallardia), Goldenrods (Solidago), Cornflower (Rudbeckia), Mexican petunia (Ruellia), and Money Plant (Luneria).
Reseeding vines like Blue Morning Glories and Moon Vine add height. Reseeding herbs like Parsley and Chives discourage bugs in addition to having nice foliage, and chives have pretty flowers, too! Also consider perennials like Four O’Clocks, Butterfly weed, and Purple coneflower. Bulbs can be grown with your reseeding annuals, too. Tiger or Species Lilies look nice with tall flowers, and bulbs like Tulips, Crocus, Daffodils, and Paperwhites bloom while the rest of the garden is sleeping.