As an avid gardener myself and working in the flower bulb business since I was 15 years old, I seem to be consistently coming across the same request. People want seasonal gardens so that they can look out their window any time of the year and see an amazing display of color and beauty. How do we get this affect even in spring, when temperatures are still chilly and the ground is just warming up?
Answer is simple: Flower Bulbs! They fit the requirements perfectly, having been planted in the balminess of fall. Generally, plants that grow up from bulbs are great for seasonal gardens because once they're growing and subsequent blooming cycle is finished, they can be cut back and thrown to compost for another later season, or they can be taken inside for beautiful bouquets. Yet their bulbs stay in the ground, ready for next year’s growing season and out of the way for the generally bushier plants to grow up and around them.
Start first with the early flowering varieties like Snowdrops, Chionodoxa, Crocus or Winter Aconite for a late winter surprise. Then move on in the spring with Hyacinths followed along with a beautiful bundle of early Tulip flowers. Another good early spring flower that is sweet and reliable are Muscari bulbs as they are setting your garden up for great pollination by producing a good amount of nectar; beautiful and useful! Then, get ready for Easter with Daffodils, adding an additional height layer to the garden as well. When the daffodils are almost done flowering you can choose mid to late flowering Tulip varieties. Next, for some later spring early summer bulbous blooms I love to include Dutch Iris and then taller Alliums to look down over the rest.
The best thing? You don’t have to look very far! All of the great flowering bulbs mentioned above can be found right here at DutchGrown.com!
