New Hyacinth Bed for Spring 2010

I planted my new hyacinth bed over the last 10 days. It includes 24 different varieties planted side by side. I chose a location on a raised terrace fronted by a stone wall. It is bone dry in the summer which hyacinths seem to like and it drains well--I also put a thin layer of pea gravel sprinkled with some bulb food on the bottom of the bed to take no chances with soggy bulb bases. Because we have gophers and moles I used heavy duty metal cages from Gardener's Supply Co that are about 12 in square and 5 in deep. I fit 2 varieties in each cage separated by a piece of hardware cloth so if I ever dig them up I can still tell which variety is which. The cages come with attached tops which I removed, because the 3/4 in holes are too small for fat hyacinth sprouts to get through.

The photo is of the first 6 cages that were planted. I left a couple of bulb package labels on them just for the photo so I would have a reference point to know what each variety of bulb looked like at planting time.
Starting at the top Left row in the photo the hyacinth varieties from L to R are as follows:

cage 1: Purple Sensation & Atlantic
cage 2: White Pearl & Blue Magic
cage 3: Roman Pink & Apricot Passion
Bottom left row:
cage 7: Dreadnought & Lady Derby
cage 8: Roman Blue & Odysseus
cage 9: General Kohler & Chesnut Flower (just at the right edge )

I'll post another message for the second set of 6 cages.
Chris

Second 6 Cages of Hyacinths

Continued from my previous message...

The second set of cages were planted just yesterday--it is raining and windy today, so I'm glad I didn't wait any longer.

Photo of the second 6 cages before they were covered
Top Left Row of cages:
cage 4: Prince of Love & Blue Tango
cage 5: Amsterdam & Blue Sapphire
cage 6: Firelights & Fondant

Bottom Row:
cage 10: Isabelle & Gypsy Queen(with label for photo reference)
cage 11: Blue Star & Vuurbaak
cage 12: Kronos & Violet Smith

The hyacinths are covered with soil up to the tops of their cages, but I have left room in back and front of the cages for some daffodils and some muscari. I hope to get them planted this weekend and then add the final layer of soil to fill up the bed.

That's it. 24 different hyacinth varieties--some very old, some very new. Some I have grown before and some that are new to me. I can hardly wait until March for the show to begin!


Chris

Wow I cannot wait to see your spring show!!! I want to dig up the entire beds around my house and rework the soil and replant. Nice to see those baskets and get an idea how they work. My yard would be the capitol for gophers!!

Awesome, Chris, I will be eager to see your show come Spring!!!! You really put a lot of effort into this and I am sure will have results to show for it.

Chris, That's a wonderful job! Can't wait to see your blooms. Creatures can dig down into the cages. You might want to remove some of the dirt off of the top and put an inch or 2 of the pea gravel or some poultry grit there to keep them from digging. If you use mulch, don't make it more than an inch thick, or it will become a great hiding spot for creatures.

Chris,
I am curious....being in 9a, do you 'chill' your bulbs first, or did you just order them. I live in 8b and I can't get them to bloom because we do not have enough cold weather. If I 'chill' them first then they will bloom, but still never like the picture.

can't wait to see them as well.... I didn't think Hyacinth would grow in our zones... as mine never came back last year..maybe 'cause they were 'forced' bulbs from the big box store. :( They were pretty while they lasted , (I didn't dig the bulbs either)..that might have something to do with it.

As for the wire cages.. good idea, but I'm wondering if plastic would work as well as the wire? I know someone that gets some milk crates on the occasion and was wondering if they would be as affective?! (coving the top of course)

covering the top. . sorry. . let a type-o slip

Chris, I'm curious what critters give you problem with your Hyacinths? The rodents don't bother them here, they prefer Tulips, Crocus, and Lilies, LOL.

Rodents always bother mine. Even with being planted in grit, they will sometimes chew on the tops as they are emerging above the ground. Once they get about 2' tall, them seem to let them alone.

Hello Fellow Hyacinth fans,
I will try to catch up on the posted comments and questions in the next few days.

Critters: Here in N Calif my main critters are deer, gophers, moles, squirrels and voles. I hire a critter catcher to come out and put in traps whenever I see fresh tunnels/mounds and that is what he tells me. I suspect that in other areas the food supplies and predator situations are different and could cause different behavior.
Also, I agree that tulips and crocus and lillies seem to be more at risk than my hyacinths. Crocus are cheap and easy to plant so I take my chances with them and just replant if I want more. I have some tulips that have never been bothered and others that were wiped out within 2 years. If I want to keep the tulips going I now plant them in raised beds (with hardware cloth bottoms) or cages. My lillies are all in pots or raised beds, however the deer love to browse the tops. I grow lots of different narcissus which are rarely bothered. Some seem to slowly decline and get sparser, but the tazetta types grow into thick clumps.

Deer--I have never seen any damage to hyacinth leaves from deer, but it may be because they are not present during the growing season as the local deer tend to spend their winter/springs up higher where there is good grass and more open space. Winters are our wet season here. In the summer when that wild grass is dry and gone, the deer do venture down and browse (roses and agapanthus are great favorites) but my hyacinths are dormant. Dr Bill Miller at Cornell says that hyacinths are resistant to deer browsing and suggests this benefit should be better advertised.

Gophers and Voles--these are my main problem. My critter catcher says the voles will use the gopher runs. I have lost many of the bulbs that I foolishly planted without cages. It seems like they should be able to climb over the cage walls, as I don't put tops on the cages, but so far I have not been sure that that is happening (I have lost a few bulbs in cages but not sure that it was not due to other reasons like rot, etc). Maybe because the walls are 5 in tall, if they crawl over it means exposing themselves to predators on the surface?? I am going to try adding a layer of grit/gravel over the top per your suggestion, Stormyla. btw I have hyacinths in cages that I planted in 2002 that are still coming back , albeit smaller and less dense in most cases.

Squirrels: We have both tree squirrels and ground squirrels. I see them all the time in the back patio area where we have bird feeders, but I have never seen any evidence of digging up my hyacinths. My cat has caught a couple, but he is spending more time sleeping than hunting, these days so I don't think he is much of a deterrent, now.

Moles--I don't think the moles are realy after the bulbs just the worms and grubs. I think they push the bulbs around as I find them coming up in unexpected places.

Chris

Pre Chilling question:

I don't prechill any of my bulbs.

GAgirl: I am very surprised that you didn't get any blooms the first year. I have grown over 70 different cultivars and I don't think I have ever had ones that didn't bloom their first year and I have warmer winters than you ?? I really don't know what happened but I am going to list some possible suggestions so I hope you will try hyacinths again.

1) Don't plant the bulbs until the soil temps have dropped--I plant in mid to late Nov. Even if some vendors ship to me in early Oct (I request later shipment if they offer it, but many do not) , I store the bulbs in a cool (60-70 degree) , dark cupboard in my garage until our soil cools off-usually after our first rain. If it is really hot when I receive them I keep them in a closet in the air conditioned house for a couple of weeks. I take them out of the shipping boxes to get good air circulation. It is not recommended to store them in your refrigerator which at 40 degrees is below the recommended storage temp of 50-70 degrees and can also expose them to ethelyne gas (from ripening fruits and vegs)
which can damage the embryo bud. I think that planting them in too warm soil temps can encourge them to split and produce only small, thin green shoots rather than blooms.

2) Choose varieties that do better in warm climates. Cornell Univ has done comparison studies of hyacinths in numerous climate zones in the US and Europe. The warmest zones were
Clemson SC (zone 7, with wet summers) and Italy (zone 8/9 with dry summers). They noticed significant differences among the varieties that they chose.
Some of the best performers based on the number of blooms in their 3rd season from 20 original bulbs :
In Clemson SC: (Zone 7)
Atlantic
City of Haarlem
Gipsy Queen
Lady Derby
Ostara

In Italy: (Zone 8/9)
Atlantic
City of Haarlem
Delft Blue
Fondant (sometimes listed as 'Pink Frosting')
Pink Pearl
White Pearl * I have had trouble getting this one to come back??
Woodstock

and one that has been a strong performer for me is an old one that is still available:
L'Innocence

also you might try to get the old Roman Blue Hyacinth that has naturalized in some parts of the South. I got some from BuggyCrazy and I think there once was a source in in TX.

I've noticed that these varieties are not often carried by my local nursery centers. I have to order from catalogs/online, or in the case of Hy 'Atlantic', I had to order it from a co-op on DG--the source was eflowergarden in Lawrenceville, GA ( I think they are probably importers not growers for hyacinths).

I hope this gives you some ideas .

Chris

Wow - I am in awe....posting to this to look forward to Spring.

Plastic bulb cages?
Dirtygirl: I think plastic would work for bulb cages, as long as it is sturdy enough to be covered with dirt and too tough for your critters to chew through. You mentioned putting a top on them, but I caution against this unless the top has holes big enough to let the fat hyacinth shoots through without damage--I know that 3/4 in holes are too small, so think about at least 1-1.5 in holes if you need to have a top.

chris, Voles can get through 1 inch holes, so i wouldn't bother with that. The grit would be a better choice for the top.

Hi, Chris, I just came across your hyacinth project for this year and thanks for sharing all the details and background information.

Now I wonder if you are getting any sprouts?

I am dying to know how your garden turns out! Don't forget to get some photos!

Also, do you have a favorite hyacinth bulb supplier or do you just shop around at the usual online sources?

Thanks. t.

Strangely, I have a clump of Hyacinths up and showing color- thankfully only 1 variety, but I can't imagine why. Just the last few days we've gotten a reprieve from the terrible cold we had for most of January, but we're still just talking above freezing with a day of highs in the 50s. The oddly behaving variety is Miss Saigon I believe, their noses were above ground in December. Normally its about Valentines Day when I'm seeing the Hyacinths push their noses above ground.

Gemini, I've got Hyacinths above ground as well. It is very strange.

This odd clump of mine have blooms! Pathetic, cold damaged blooms, but blooms..in January! They were grown in a pot last year, being clearanced bulbs at the end of season they arrived too late to get them in the ground. I don't see how that would have thrown them off like this though?

Gemini, Now that is really strange.

Gem, interesting about your Miss Saigon's. I just ran out and looked at mine and I have just one clump of them with shoots about 1 inch out of the ground.

No sign at all of all the other hyacinths that I planted (lots of them), but I do see some ominous looking deep impressions in the garden~~hope the squirrels or rabbits, etc., didn't decide they liked hyacinths after all...

I am loving my indoor forced hyacinths this year, but my daughter just reported her eyes are burning and she has the sniffles and I wonder if that's a result of my latest pot of them I placed on the kitchen table. She thinks so. Oh, well...

T, the impressions might be deer prints. I don't think you'll have to worry about rodents, I've never had a Hyacinth nibbled, even when I lived in the woods. None of the many others are showing yet, so I'd imagine yours are fine. Sounds like Miss Saigon may tend to be an early riser though.

Stormy, mine are at about the same point yours are!

Steve, they look so pretty among the Oak leaves. But I would expect Hyacinths in Texas to look like yours now, not in Pa, though!

Hi Everyone,

I haven't checked this site for a few days while I switched over to a new computer(ARGHH!) but now it is working and I hope I have all my files. Anyway...back to hyacinths.

My new bed doesn't have any hyacinth sprouts yet. I planted them deep, and late-ish so I am not worried, yet.

My older beds have lots of sprouts. The first ones this year were Splendid Cornelia, Bismark, Mirtilos and Menelik during the 2nd week of Feb. Hy o 'Splendid Cornelia' has always been my earliest bloom, even though they are under a shrub without a lot of sun at this time of year. The bulbs have been in for over 10 years. The blooms are smaller and less dense, but they just keep coming. I've included a photo of one bud with the first floret colored and springing free.

Here's another early bloomer for me--Hyacinth o. 'Mirtilos'. These buds are quite fat . We have had steady rain for about a week so it is pretty soggy here. I can also see a little leaf damage--looks like rabbits. They are shearing the leaves of my grape hyacinths and some of the crocus.

This morming there were lots more hyacinth sprouts. I even found a Madame Sophie with a nice fat bud. I also found a clump that I think is Miss Saigon.


Chris

This message was edited Jan 26, 2010 12:33 PM

Wow, Those are certainly beautiful, Chris. What a welcome sight!

Chris, I have re-looked through your hycinth posts above and don't recognize several of your varieties.

At least I don't seem them listed in the usual catalogs... Can you tell us what your bulb source is?

T:

I will go "to the ends of the internet" to find hyacinths. I usually have a 'shopping' list from books, and ones that I have lost, but I during my search I often find ones that aren't on my list. For the heirlooms my first choice is Old House Gardens. But I also go to Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, McClure and Zimmerman, B & B, and Scheepers. I also found one on my list for years from a DG co-op. This year I discovered that Jacques Amand (the British Co) had a website and shipping from NJ and I was able to find something else that had been on my list for several years. It's interesting that some of the big bulb shippers like Breck's, Holland Bulb Farm and Van Bourgonien each had one new and unique hyacinth cultivar. I also found an unusual source that appears to be a standard, storefront website that is personalized with the name and address of a regional or local nursuery. (I saw exactly the same bulb list and photos etc at a couple different US nursery sites). They had a big list of hyacinths including some not available anywhere else. I ordered a couple from them and it appears to me that the website is produced by some big Dutch bulb grower/wholesaler. The local garden center gets the website, takes the order and the payment and then does the shipment once they receive the bulbs.

btw if there is a specific cultivar you are interested in, I will tell you which source I used.

Chris

Chris, I would also love to know where you get your hyacinths from. I buy mine from Ednie/Wooden Shoe, John Scheepers, Van Engelen, and B & B, and Old House Gardens, but some of yours are not familiar to me, either.

A new company I'm trying this year is ADR bulbs.

http://www.adrbulbs.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=plants.storedSearch&searchID=154

They have a nice selection, but I don't know how they will be yet. I suspect good, as anytime I have had a question they have gotten back to me in minutes, plus the company has been around for 70 years or so.

Hyacinths are my favorites of all spring bulbs, and surprisingly they come back forever here. Not as floriferous of course, but they never seem to die out.

Polly,

Thank you for the referral to ADR. I don't know how I missed them in my searches? They have a very good selection including some of the more unusual hyacinths like Marconi, Blue Magic and the new Skyline. I saved the link.

Chris

They've never come up in my searches either. They contacted me to see if I would want a wholesale account through a magazine I get, GMPro.

I will look up the hyacinths you have that I'm not familiar with, and if I can't find them, maybe you will be kind enough to give a source.

Polly did you give them a federal tx id number when you ordered from ADR?

marie, they do wholesale and retail both. For wholesale, yes, they needed all my nursery info. It doesn't look like their retail prices are too high, though.

Thanks, Chris. ~~ Well you've got all the suppliers 'bout covered if you're even shopping at Jacques Armand! He's quite the specialist, isn't he? http://www.jacquesamand.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=JAUK

And I wondered if you sourced any from the Pacific Bulb Society? You have quite a collection and thanks for sharing your list!

When I googled last week for 'hyacinth forcing' the ADR site came up and was new to me, too. I was sorry to see that Langeveld went out of business, unless ADR is the re-incarnation of Langeveld.

Langeveld and Netherland Bulbs are together now, I think. It was a Langeveld that answered a question for me the other day from Netherland Bulbs, anyway, and I don't remember seeing that name there before. .

First hyacinth shoots!

Just spotted my first hyacinth shoots in the new bed! They are nice and fat. I've been checking it almost every day , but really kept telling myself that they should be later in emerging than my existing beds since they were just planted in mid Nov and also planted a bit deeper. My existing beds (some were planted in 2003) are about 75% emerged.

Chris99, I'm excited to see your postings about the wonderful new hyacinth beds. It will be awesome. You've put so much into it, I know you will be rewarded with an inspiring scene. I'm going to stay tuned for more photos as they bloom.

Congratulations Chris! I m looking forward to seeing your first blooms. I have many that have sprouted as well but don't think they're a far along as yours are.

First buds are Roman Blue hyacinths.

The leaves are only about 2-3 in tall but you can see the one tall stem with buds. The Roman or sometimes called 'French-Roman' hyacinths are very early and very delicate in stature but also very fragrant. These are from Old House Gardens. I have a couple of others planted in a raised bed that are from Buggy Crazy that are about the same stage of development. Other hyacinth 'noses' in the background are beginning to emerge, also, along with some daffodils and tulips that I planted as a back border.

The leaves in front are Muscari armeniacum planted as a front border to the new hyacinth bed. Unfortunately this year we have been over run with rabbits who have chewed off the leaf tips of the muscari, but so far, have not bothered the hyacinths .

Chris