This is very strange ... a lot my spring blooming bulbs are up and some have blooms starting to form. Anyone else have this happening?
Spring blooming bulbs
Hi htop,
Most of my Dutch Iris have sprouted, as well as Muscari, and some Daffodil leaves are starting to peep through the surface. I even found one Lily in the back yard sprouting. This is pretty normal for the Iris and Muscari, as they do this every year and stills eem to bloom at the same time. I have a Tazetta division Narcissus "Golden Rain" that has already sent up buds that are about 14" high, but it did this last year almost same exact time, though then it did not bloom until January. I have some Hyacinths in pots I forced last year in soil and stored dry during the summer with the bulbs still in them, and they've been outside for a few weeks and green tips are poking through. Everything else last year waited until normal time. So, we'll see!
As I recall I did have some spring blooming bulb come up in the fall the fall after I planted them, and that was the last time they came up. That is, I planted them one fall, they bloomed that following spring, and then again late that same fall when they should have been dormant and chilling. The following spring and fall they did not come up at all.
What specific kinds of bulbs did you plant, htop?
Paperwhites (Narcissus papyraceus 'Ziva'), are 1.5 feet tall, buds on them now, usually bloom in February
Dutch Iris (Oriental Beauty), 1.5 feet tall, I can't remember when these usually spring up but I know that they have come up early because they usually are not this tall when I cut back other plants around them so that they have room to grow, usually start blooming in the middle of March
False Freezia (Anomatheca laxa), this is the first fall that I have had these so I don't know when they usually spring up, usually bloom im March
The Daffodils (Narcissus tazetta, 'Tazetta Grand Soleil D'Or' ) and another variety (I can't remember the name) have are just starting to poke through the dirt which I think is about normal, but I can't remember when they usually emerge. These usually spring up first and bloom in February.
Species Tulips, Division13 (10 inches tall, red bloomers, can't locate it's name at the moment because my other computer is having a problem) has not emerged yet. I planted them too late last year and they did not bloom.
Oxalis (pink) are up and blooming which is typical for them.
I cut the lantanas to the ground this time of year. The bulbs are planted a few feet from them so I know that the bulbs are usually not up and this tall, much less budding at this time of year. The Paperwhites and Dutch Iris were grown through the lantanas.
These species tulips, Division13, (9-10 inches tall) I am just now planting which are supposed to naturalize here without having to be chilled (time well tell):
Tulipa clusiana var chrysantha 'Chrysantha' (yellow and red, blooms are fully open and star-shaped like rain lillies) and Tulipa saxatilis (light pink)
Other plants that are up early:
The larkspur have already sprouted as well and are putting on their true leaves now which is also really early.
The bluebonnets are up and starting to spread out early as well.
Perhaps this is all due to the large amount of rainy weather we have experienced in the fall.
This message was edited Nov 29, 2004 6:27 AM
Coming from the rainy UK, I am used to daffs, dutch iris, crocus, hyacinth and early tulips poking their heads up at this time of year. It never stopped them flowering! They got frozen and snowed on but continued slowly, speeding up once the days started to get longer . I often had the dwarf daffs in bloom in early February, but as one was called February Gold I don't think this was untypical. If they are going to bloom that early they have to start around now as unlike Paperwhites most daffs don't grow that fast. Snowdrops typivally bloom late January so they also make an early appearance.
Thanks, steveFtWorth, pvillePlanter and okus. I'll enjoy the plants whenever they decide to bloom.