Spring bulb pics and talk: Part V

Wallaby, what a great thing you did! Bravo!!

I've been stung multiple times by those ground nesting bees but bumble bees have a special place
in my heart. They are so cute working the blooms. Good for you for saving one Wallaby! In the US,
we are losing our native bees to those mites. There is significant concern about this here. Has this
become an issue in the UK as well?

Tam

I was suprised to see Brent&Becky's fall '06 is already online. Oh, no! This means trouble-too much time to labor over decisions. But I do like shopping for companions for things that are blooming now, but it's so hard to remember those specific spots when looking at the garden in fall.

Love that dracunculus Kenton! And so glad to see the completely colored up 'Zurel'- just lovely. I particularly like the broken colored tulips. I used to grow 'Sorbet', and it's still one of my favorites.

Hyacinthblue, pretty pics! I envy your tall snapdragons; I just transplanted mine I started from seed and sure hope they become as nice as yours. I thought freesia to about the yellow flower. At the flower shop where I work we get freesia and some varieties are fragrant while others are not. I love them all anyway, and you're so lucky to be able to leave them in the ground (and to be able to grow them at all- our summers are just too hot for them).

Tammy, sounds like you've got what people call yellow jackets around here. Mean little boogers! The honey bees all but dissappeared from this area for several years, but now I'm seeing lots of them again. That makes me very happy as well. My dog is happy to, as she likes to eat them, LOL. I figure they must taste sweet (enough to be worth the sting!). I tell people she thinks they're flying candy.

Annapet, I think VanEngelen is usually on line by the end of May.

Happy spring everyone!
Neal

Tam I haven't heard of any real problem, but last year I found one that was near death. It didn't have as many mites on it, I removed them but it was too far gone and I found it dead not long after. I just hope this one hasn't gone back to a nest and got reinfested.

kb it is so satisfying to know you have helped just one little creature, I'm sure it knew I was helping it, and yes mg they are pretty little things. I was sure I would end up killing it, it just kept walking around, legs flying, such a job! Worse than struggling with a baby when it doesn't want it's nappy on! It is surprising just how hard their body is, like a shell almost.

I have some Erythronium Pagoda in bud!

I planted some of those last fall, but no sign of them yet. :-(

Mine have taken many years to establish, I bought a pot in 1998 and it had 3 tubers in it, I planted them out separately. One seemed to disappear, the other 2 have multiplied, it was only last year they started to look good and flower again. Those in the pic are from 1 tuber. They need a moist, fairly shady spot, and should be quite deep. The leaves are better marked this year, that also seems to take time. I think they can stay underground until they are ready, so don't panick yet and don't dig them up!

That's exactly where mine are planted. On the north side of a small building, under a serviceberry tree. It's quite moist there, but not sopping wet. Oh I won't dig them up!

Ok sorry to be such newbie.I planted this in fall and now it is blooming like crazy it's quite lovely. what is it? I just remember it was around September and it was on sale.My kids took my planting stakes and labels so I am lost.I don't know what this next picture is either.Is there a way to change my user name from hyacynth to hyacinth? It's driving me nuts to see the typo.

I planted this last year too and it is??

don't know that the purple is but is is fantastic. will watch this thread as I might get some when it find out what it is

The first one is Lavandula stoechas possibly 'Kew Red' but there are several.

Second looks like a Mesembryanthemum but many are very brightly coloured. there are other succulents with similar leaves, Delosperma for one but flowers are smaller mostly, and a glowing pink/purple. I grew some from seed, D. ecklonis var. latifolia, they are on a bank and are hardy. T&M don't have it in the catalogue now but I found it on their French site

http://seeds.thompson-morgan.com/euf/fr/product/8047/1

Looked again at the second and the leaves don't look like I thought! It does look a bit like a Marigold.

This message was edited Mar 31, 2006 8:52 PM

A good link on L. stoechas

http://www.mediterraneangardensociety.org/plants/Lavandula.stoechas.html

Thank You Wallaby,
I submitted my phoyo to plant files under Lavandula stoechas .I don't know if my photo quality is good enough. I need a new camera. I remember putting seeds in that area when I first purchased this house three years ago.I think it is a combination of the lavender seeds from three years ago and the small seedlings from last year.As always you are so informative!

Great pics!!! Love them all!

Do we need another thread already?!! This one is already over a hundred posts!

A thought: Maybe we should break the next thread(s) out into one each for tulips, daffs, 'the small bulbs', and so on to organize the comments for quick reference.

I am finding this thread chock full of 'good info'....thanks everybody!

Just returned from out-of-town trip last night and can't wait to go out and scout our garden today! I see some yellow out there so it could be promising!

Hi tabasco!
I was just about to ask in a post if anyone had heard from you-been missing your cheery posts! Glad all is well. At this time of year everything is growing so fast, it's great fun to see the changes when you've been away for a few days. Look close, you may have primula budding :)
Neal.

My bulbs are so intermingled it'd be hard to post in different threads. I like the idea of seeing them all
in one spot... though I do see why your suggest to break them up. It always takes awhile to read through all the
postings & pic's in this one thread. But a new thread is in order!

Tam

I don't mind posting the last pic on this thread.
My Chinodoxa are starting to show.
Here is a small bunch, can you see more coming to the left?
This is part of what I hope will be a large carpet of them in a little while.
Andy P

While I'm at it, here is my first Daff after a shower at sunset.
Andy P

Edited to mention those little Chinodoxa in the background, I have them all over....

This message was edited Apr 1, 2006 6:09 PM

I agree with tammy on the "intermingled" part - after all, too neat is boring!
It's Iris time and late daffodils in my yard.

Here's more

More Dutch Irises

And More

steve the pic posted at 5:16 is super. is that Sir W. Churchill? talking about a color echo, the yellow center of daff and yellow stripe in iris. I love that? what is name of dbl yellow daff, posted at 5:17?

The Sir Winstron Churchills really started to open up today

Why yes Vossner it is - I sent you a closeup of it via mail as well yesterday. You should get some this fall - you'll love them! The yellow double daffs are Tahitis.

I'm definitely getting that one. Other finalists are Kaydee and Thalia. just a matter of deciding how many of each. great pic steve

Steve, I'm gonna copy your idea, sorta. I will plant this LA iris with the Sir W. Churchill daff next year.

http://www.zydecoirises.com/Flower%20Pages/Tickfaw.htm

That will look GREAT, Nery - I have never seen a red iris like that before. It will be stunning...

All this blue, yellow, and white is beautiful. Andy and Steve, all of your colors and textures above are just great.

How about a new thread about spring bulbs blooming in the garden in general, as a continuation of this, and sort of concentrate on garden shots and combinations. Then other threads as well on specifics, like the many varieties of daffs, or the peculiarities of frittilarias. I love those threads for specific culture info. Also great for close up shots and close inspection of specific genera.

What y'all think?

I'm with you gem, good idea. I'll start with a "little blue bulbs" thread--since I would like to know more about what little blue bulbs work with daffs and hyacinths and forsythias, etc. I can't seem to get the bloom sequences right and the little bulbs looked spaced out and lonely... http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/587959/
not like a grand 'river' of muscari like the dutch seem to do...or is that a touched up photo they keep using over and over? LOL

Love all the 'preview' pics the Texas gardeners are providing for those of us up north! Can't wait until I get some more of my daffs to bloom (not to mention the others!).

I like all of them mashed together in one grand thread, just my opinion. Other Genera threads are popping up by themselves. Here, we can post mixed pictures. Really, the best flowers are not by themselves.

I know what you mean, Tabasco. I like massive clumps, but with natural-looking stragglers spilling about willy-nilly. I have a boatload of Pictures for a new thread (from my friend's massive Narc collection) but I'll just post the inside of my T. 'Zurel,' for now.

K. James

Spectacular Kenton! Another for the 'list'......I agree that it is better all mixed, many of us don't have large mixed plantings at this time of year, so it would be only Steve posting. Anyone can start another thread for something special. It has been a good thread so far, it works so if it ain't broke don't fix it.


My T Shakespeare have really done well this year, as many of the bulbs have done. They have increased and flowered better than before, and the colours are amazing. So different to previous years. The backs of the petals have developed a gorgeous, almost iridescent flush, at the same time appearing to be soft and subtle. The colour on these I took yesterday is true

Fully open in the Sun

The whole bed, that sticky thing in the middle is a hydrangea which struggles when too dry, but looks great if weather suits

My corydalis solida has also done better and the colour is different, more purple. I started with 10 a few years ago, put them in pots over winter for a start and only one grew. It has now made some small bulbs near the plant (found some on top), and increased well. This pic shows the 'mouth', it looks like a fish

You can see all the Lily of the Valley springing up, last year they really went mad and stayed green all summer for the first time since I put them there 6 years ago, they are going through my Anenome nemorosa Robinsoniana but I don't think they bother it.

One of my free 'special hybrids' from T&M

A side view of another the same, the base of the cup is orange, turning to yellow and paler at the edges. The frilled edge is really lots of deeply cut, frilly semi-circles overlapping each other. The petals are creamy white.

This is really interesting, such a complicated centre

N Jetfire showing orange cups, they are a little more orange than I can capture