If you follow me on Pinterest, my apologies for the bajillion garden photos I just repinned. I’m a little bit obsessed at the moment.
It’s been unseasonably warm the last few days, which made it a little hard to get outside to do much, though I’ll try not to complain after the super frigid winter we had.
I’ve got a nice batch of winter sowing containers going with seedlings for both my flower and veggie gardens, but the most exciting thing in my garden right now are the bulbs! I’ve mentioned before how much I love bulbs. If you’ve got a black thumb, try some spring bulbs. You won’t be disappointed. They are so easy, it almost feels like cheating.
Grape hyacinth – I was experimenting with using my 50mm camera lens backwards as a make-shift macro lens.
Forget-me-nots: the only non-bulb that’s blooming right now (aside from the cursed dandelions!). I didn’t realize I had some in the yard already and bought seeds for them a few months ago. Oh well, the more the merrier.
Hyacinths! These smell so nice.
A rainbow tulip mix with narcissus “Geranium”. If you plant any daffodils, please give the Geranium or Martinette (shown further down the page) a shot. I love the cluster of little blooms that come up on each stalk and the SMELL. Oh my god, best smelling flowers on the planet. Sorry, lilacs, you’ve been replaced!
I planted the grape hyacinths in October, and they’re already multiplying! Which reminds me, I bought all of my bulbs from EasytoGrowBulbs, and I couldn’t be happier. I’ve bought bulbs from a lot of places over the years, these were the nicest I’ve ever received, and the prices were very reasonable. Almost all of my bulbs are multiplying already, which really surprised me. I’m not being compensated for this post, I’m really just that crazy about these bulbs!
Narcissus “February Gold”- so-named because they reliably bloom in February. This winter was so harsh and lasted so long, these guys didn’t bloom until April!
Tulip Queen of Night and Spring Green with narcissus “Martinette” – the bulb site I ordered from recommended these two tulips together, and they really are a pretty combination. and the Martinettes look great with them, though I’m not sure if they’ll always bloom around the same time… this year has been so weird!
The thing with tulips is that varmints love to eat them. I’m almost tempted to try a nibble myself, the critters seem to find them so tasty (both the bulbs themselves and the plant). However, no one likes to eat daffodils. There are lots of ways to try to deter the wildlife from eating your bulbs, but I was intrigued about the idea of planting the tulips under a layer of daffodils. You dig one hole, throw in a tulip, add a bit of dirt to get the right planting depth for the daffodil, add the daffodil, and then fill the hole.
I’m happy to report that it’s worked perfectly so far! I don’t think I’ve lost a single tulip. We have a huge rabbit population (it’s not unusual to see half a dozen of them chasing each other around the yard), and I routinely startle one little guy when I take the dog out for a wizz. We also have two lardass groundhogs (I curse their hearts) and squirrels.
Another tip if you want to grow tulips and you’ve got wildlife concerns: I like to keep them closer to the house where there are more of our smells/sounds that add an extra layer of deterrence.
Lots of the perennials I winter sowing and planted last year are already coming back strong. I can’t wait until everything is blooming! And I’m already plotting to kill the rest of the grass to make room for more flowers.
So tell me, what’s blooming in your yard right now? What are you favorite spring flowers?