I just can’t stop. My tulips are blowing my mind this year. They’re so pretty!
The coral-and-navy? NATURE, STOP IT. IT’S TOO MUCH.
The one that looks like sherbert? SO DELICIOUS-LOOKING, I WANT TO EAT IT.
The periwinkle-and-blue? YES PLEASE.
And these crazy purple stripes? NOW YOU’RE JUST SHOWING OFF. SETTLE DOWN, NATURE. WE ALL KNOW HOW AMAZING YOU ARE, OK?
This spring has been rough, hasn’t it? But it’s wonderful to finally see some flowers blooming. How pretty is this daffodil?
And I love these tulips, the color combination of coral and royal blue is stunning.
Today is my 35th birthday! Here’s what is in bloom (or almost in bloom) in my garden:
Crabapple tree is almost in bloom
Bleeding hearts
One white tulip
Blueberry blooms
Forsythia
Lungwort
Daffodils
Cherry blossoms
Prairie Smoke
What do I have planned for the rest of the day? Planning, weeding, napping and a big slice of birthday cake!
At this time in the gardening year, I’m feeling a little pleased with myself. I’ve planned ahead and have stuff blooming. If you are bitten hard by the gardening bug, eventually you take on the fun challenge of stretching the bloom season. To get the earliest start, that means discovering the world of spring bulbs and flowers. Nearly everyone knows about daffodils and tulips, but there are lots of things that bloom earlier. Some are little perennial wildflowers such as bloodwort and Pasqueflowers. If you really want tons of color, go for the wee bulbs: crocus, snowdrops, iris reticulata, muscari, scilla. Planted in the right spot, snowdrops are the earliest to show. In a good year, the crocus bloom in late March. In fair years, they’re around by April 10th. We won’t talk about the bad years.
Crocus--best planted by the hundreds
Force starting species tulip bulbs: A futile effort?
Last fall, I fell in love with species tulips and bought four bags of bulbs. Apparently, I only planted two bags — and hid the rest on top of bookcase.
I found the remaining bulbs Sunday afternoon. Some were dried out husks. Some had sad little yellow sprouts awkwardly outstretched towards the track lighting.
With 6-12 inches of snow on the garden, what is a girl to do? Bust out some old pots and have a planting party.
Will these bulbs grow and eventually bloom? I have my doubts, but I’ll keep you posted!