We're finally getting spring here!

The eranthus of course were my first signs of spring. Starting
from a few purloined seeds, I've got a small cluster going now

And then came a few well-placed crocus, coming along early in the
heat from the nearby greenhouse

The hellebores have been blooming but its been too cold to
enjoy them 'til now (still chilly here though)

Edited to say: ooops ... I forgot I was posting bulbs.

This message was edited Mar 15, 2008 1:06 PM

How about some snowdrops/galanthus?

Tulips in the deep South. :-)

Another view

Ah... great to see tulips! We'll have them in another month or so.
Got any more to share? I've got just one more to share myself.
Some early iris reticulata

Tammy, thanks for the invitation. I'll share some more of hyacinchs. Just wanted to say, I love those Iris reticulata. Yours is lot more earlier than mine, oppose to that of the Tulips. Go figure. :-)
Kim

Kim,

Nice mix! My hyacinths are not even breaking
ground yet. The iris reticulata are planted along a
stone walkway - must get extra heat for an early
start. But they are typically earlier than tulips no
matter where I have them.

Wow Tammy and kim love those pictures. I wish I could have tulips here. I miss them!! Helebores are more like an annual for us.

What's in bloom in Tolleson these days Marie? Care to share?
Tam

Blooms and more blooms in the front of the border today.

Ooooo... even some pretty little pansies!

I love all the bulb blooms and spring flower pics! so pretty and elegant!

Wish I had something to post but it will be a week or two, I think! I must be patient!

all the little pale blue iris reticulata were open today. They
are so fleeting but a wonderful start to the blooming season.
Oops. Iris histroides Kathrine Hodgkin! I just looked them
up.

One iris reticulata 'harmony' was blooming today. There will
be more in a couple of days.

Anyone else have some spring beauties popping up?

Tam

Ok, one more pics. and I'll wish everyone goodnight. I'll return tomorrow to share some more spring flowers.
Kim

Tammy, have you ever been to Welkinweir? I saw these blooming there yesterday, but I don't know what they are. They have lots of Hellebores now, too.

Tammy I will share tonight when I am at home.
claypa whatever those are I want some!!

Clay, your little blue plant is a squill, that is sure a vivid beautiful blue. All we have blooming here in the PNW is daffodils and snowdrops. The tulips are still a couple of weeks away, too cool here yet.

Thanks, I'd never seen one up close before. I guess squill is what's planted in the lawns at Longwood gardens, not too far from here.

I was in your neighborhood last fall and I so wanted to get out to Longwood but just didn't work. Guess it just gives me a reason to return.

yep.. those are squill.

Wow - I just googled Wilkenweir. I hadn't even heard of it.
I'm gonna get there soon. It looks like a great place to visit.
Thanks for the tip Claypa!

Tam

http://www.greenvalleys.org/welkinweir.asp

This is a great area to visit for garden tours. Winterthur is fantastic
too. The grounds are more naturalistic than Longwood and the house
has many antiques. Apparently many of the reproductions were made
for Jackie Kennedy in the white house. And Chanticleer is a spectacular
public garden as well.

Tam

OK here is some of what I have blooming now! This has been blooming for the last month

This has been blooming for almost 2 weeks.

I love these!

And now for some color.

One more.

How lovely, marieortiz, tell me what they all are especially the third one.

3rd one Marie--isn't that Gladiolus tristis? I need to get out the flashlight and go check on mine and see if they are budded up......smooth forgot about them out there.

edited to add--Marie, just went out and checked mine by flashlight and they are budded up too. You haven't lived until you've stopped on the way back in with a paintbrush and spread pollen on Zeph atamasco's by flashlight. One of these nights I'm quite certain the cops are going to see me and I'd hate to have to explain what I'm doing with a flashlight and paintbrush close to midnight lurking around the windows; even if they are my own windows. I need to do a closer property check tomorrow and see what's going on with a lot of the other bulbs--been much to preoccupied with Narcissus and Hippeastrums lately.

This message was edited Mar 17, 2008 11:40 PM

LOL that's funny! If you get caught we'll bail you out!

I here ya Debbie!! I often wait for someone to call the police on me when I have not been able to find time and I am out it the garden with a flashlight at night!! Thanks for the id on #3 :o)

We need some pictures please Debbie!!

No problem Marie--what do you want to see?
Here's a Hippeastrum glaucescens opening up--Zeph atamasco is blooming, but it will be blooming even better after the rain today. Lots of other stuff is blooming too--you'll have to make a request or else you get my choice--lol

Oooo... great pictures Marie! What's the last one - blue? Is it an anemone?

Debbie - you grow those amaryllis outdoors? More pictures, your choice please!
Tam

hi tammy and all the bulb folks! nice to see spring is making it up the pennsylvania way- brr- its been cold- Someday the snow will be gone here- Tam, I wondered about the winter aconite- eranthus- Was it hard to start by seed? I've seen seed offered in catalogs like chilterns, and wondered... I guess when you see huge patches of them in lawns they have gotten that way by seeding themselves, so maybe its relatively easy! Sarah

I understand it is difficult to start from seed. Anyone heard of Norm Deno?
He is a retired chemistry professor from Penn State who has spent years
studying seed germination. I visited his garden a few years ago and saw
the seeds on the eranthus. I asked him if I could take some and he laughed
and said sure but they are impossible to start. I just threw them on the
ground and found one little plant there the next year. I understand they need
cold stratification. I'll see if I can gather seeds for you from mine but no
guarantees!

It got cold again - those little iris will be lasting longer than some years.
No heat wave to wilt them away!

Good story about your visit to Dr. Deno's home.

It's very cool that you got to meet him and that he gave you the eranthus seeds to try to start.

And that you got them started with out using the 'Deno Method'!

I just looked up his book on Amazon and it looks like it's 'unavailable' from them, but maybe it's available through private sources...

thats a great story- sometimes its best to let nature do it her own way! now, all you have to do is wait 20 years...... but the little bulbs do increase in wonderful ways. One of my projects is to surround my big old apple tree with tomasianus crocus- and I ordered 100 about 15 years ago thinking whew, 100 crocuses!! (now i would think that was no where near enoungh..) Every year those little patches get bigger, and each year after they have bloomed i get the trowel and divide some of the clumps to make new clumps- there are many hundreds there now- they make me sooooo happy. so, yes, i'm thinking a patch of eranthus would be great! i'm willing to buy some bulbs- its not a huge sacrifice! it would be cute to try to continue the story of the traveling winter aconite, though! s.

Debbie I need that Hippeastrum glaucescens not want it but need it! Post pictures of anything you have. I know you have some good ones. Tammy not a anemone but I have not figured it out yet. I grow my amaryllis outside too. That is what the 2nd picture is.

All my Hippeastrums, including species Hipp's, are grown in the ground here. I have a lot blooming here but this opened this morning (finally); Freesi laxa 'Joan Evans'. I grow Freesia laxa red, pure white, 'Joan Evans', and Freesia laxa subsp auzurea (blue); but this one has been the last to bloom. I also do 5 speices of Freesia's (not laxa's) but they have all been blooming for a while.