Anybody else planting bulbs??

[Gwen]

Past me went completely insane and ordered a ludicrous number bulbs and they all arrived yesterday! 3800 of them.

Now, 1000 of them are crocus so that hardly counts. Another 500 are eranthus (very early, february blooming and important for bees, last winter it was so warm and the bees were all over them, as they were awake and there wasn’t much else to eat!) 100 anemone (windflower), and 100 ipheion, all of which are very small and can be planted relatively shallowly and 5-10 to a hole. So those 700 are already done, and the crocus should also go fast.

The rest are narcissus and tulips!! I refused to do tulips for years because they are expensive and I thought they didn’t come back the next year but I finally broke and ordered a small batch and they all rebloomed so now I’m hooked. Plus I have a deer fence so they are relatively safe, except from one fat little chipmunk I’ve caught digging up a few...

Some of my favorite varieties right now:

Tulip Budlight: https://www.johnscheepers.com/tulip-budlight.html

They are gorgeous, come up year after year in April and hold their blooms for 3-4 weeks! Love them, but I know that the chipmunk got at least 6 over the summer so I’m replanting a gazillion in the hopes that the little guy/gal misses some...

Tulip New Design

https://www.johnscheepers.com/tulip-new-design.html

The base of the blossom is pale yellow, and it makes it look like there are tiny little led lights in the base of each one, it looks like they are glowing. Also beautiful variegated foliage which looks lovely even after the bloom has gone by.

Tulip Antoinette

https://www.johnscheepers.com/tulip-antoinette.html

This one is REMARKABLE - at least 3 blooms to a stem, and it changes color over 3-4 weeks, starting yellow and ending a brilliant pink/red!

Anybody else planting bulbs right now? What are your favorite varieties? Tell me so I can regret my purchases and order even more next year...

[Gwen]

Also some Narcissus - I couldn’t include more than three links in the post...

Narcissus Silver Chimes

https://www.johnscheepers.com/narcissus ... himes.html

So sweet, smells delicious and has a large number of blossoms per stem!

Narcissus Sweet Smiles

https://www.johnscheepers.com/narcissus ... miles.html

Beautiful peach center, several to a stem, smells delicious, a really beautiful delicate variety I just love.

[Gwen]

3AFBC85E-D8BC-4C2A-9512-C1C3CDBC13FA.jpeg (187.36 KiB) Viewed 9623 times

These are eranthus

FD574E65-B699-40BF-B5A4-4B339F71398F.jpeg (229.08 KiB) Viewed 9623 times

This is New Design - don’t they look like they are glowing??

236E0824-DEE1-494F-90CD-6A756C4944BD.jpeg (102.22 KiB) Viewed 9623 times

And this is Antoinette, towards the end of its color change.

[Canyon]

Really, 3800 bulbs?!? You are dedicated! I planted a few hundred narcissus and crocus many years ago, and that was way more work than I imagined. It is so easy to get suckered in by the lovely photos in the catalogs.

All your selections are beautiful! I am tempted by eranthus, but I have to really limit my gardening time because of arthritis.

My narcissus come back dependably every year and spread; my tulips slowly dwindle away. I have some large purple allium that reseed like crazy, same with grape hyacinth.

[piedmontfields]

Yes, I am another bulb freak. I usually plant about 1000 per year (after planting about 5000 the first year we got this place). I still don't have blooms all the way up the driveway...but that is the plan.

I especially love fragrant jonquils and species tulips. I'm getting into spanish hyacinth now, too, as it looks nice at the wood's edge.

For those who think we're crazy, just wait until spring

[Tarlo Farm]

Wow, you guys rock! I think I'm special if I do "The Works" from White Flower Farm! When I do that, I have a knife to drag behind my tractor that cuts a perfect furrow. This year I just did a few spring things and I can't even remember what they were.

"eranthus" these are on my list for next year for the bees for sure, thanks for the tip!

[Tarlo Farm]

Ya know, looking more closely at the eranthus, I think my mom planted a boatload of those. Do people call them "Snowdrops" or something like that? I can dig a bunch from the folks' place. They spread like crazy and the deer leave them alone. Yay!

[Tarlo Farm]

Gwen, PLEASE revive this thread in...oh...February?

[Gwen]

Piedmontfields I’m so glad I’m not alone! I ordered 500 Spanish hyacinth, I have a patch inherited from the previous owners and I want to expand it and also see if we can get them naturalizing in the light woodland area we have on the other side of the stream and pretend we’re in those beautiful bluebell carpeted woods they have in England.

I’m already regretting that I only got 1000 crocus, and frankly even 100 of each variety of tulip and narcissus seems inadequate as I want to do long sweeps of dense plantings, and I’m feeling anxious that it won’t stretch far enough without getting thin. Next year maybe fewer varieties but more of each.

I have a new garden bed I need to get bulbs into, which is again why I’m nervous about quantities, but I placed some bulbs today to get a sense for spacing and I think it will be ok.

[PaulaO]

I don't garden, but I love to look at flowers. Please post pics when they bloom, especially when they poke through the snow.

[AmityBee]

I am going to his week.

I moved in with my horse this summer and for the first time in my life I have a tiny litte garden to work with. So, obvoiusly there are not nearly as many bulbs to plant.

The bulbs have been waiting for weeks now, but I felt it was way too warm yet plus I wanted to get something first to lighten up the clayish soil we have here (I don't want the bulbs to rot).

I got tulips and snowdrops, striped squill, anemone, iris, ranuculus and narcissus (in red/white).

[piedmontfields]

Last year was my first with the Spanish hyacinths. i think they have good potential. I have them mixed in with hostas and azaleas, plus anemones. I love snow drops but they are not that awesome in my part of of the south. Due to excess rain and rodents, I have a certain amount of bulb loss every year, so I replenishing is part of the process. Also many years it is crazy warm in January which can throw things off quite a bit.

Most of my bulbs are just planted in "the lawn"--as in grass-like area that I mow after bulb season. I do have some tulip and iris (and crinum and lily) patches in proper gardens, but the numbers are far fewer.

I agree that one can never have too many crocus. I'm trying to remember to always buy more yellow and white varieties (even though I prefer the purple) because they show up better on our green (February) grass. I think the purple are most awesome in snowier locales.