GARDENER'S WORD - IDEAS AND TIPS

Oh, what a find. I had often seen the strong-coloured blue of Muscari flowers but last autumn I came across the pale-blue muscari 'Valerie Finnis'.  I thought I would give it a try and wow, the colour really does look good in my garden trough and mixed in with white Scilla 'Siberica' and in a tub with blue Scilla 'Siberica'  I should have taken the photos earlier to show the muscari against the beauty of white scilla.  Muscari 'Valerie Finnis' Muscari 'Valerie Finnis' Muscari 'Valerie Finnis' grown in a tub with blue Scilla Muscari 'Valerie Finnis' in a tub with blue Scilla The more commonly seen colour of muscari, below... A clump of blue Muscari

I bought and planted an awful lot of bulbs last year, literally hundreds, as I wanted a 'cheer-up-it's-spring' display after winter which, at least in West Yorkshire, seems to last forever.  I don't just have them in tubs but they are also in borders and a trough under my living room window.   A medley of spring bulbs in tubs on a sunny patio - early April In between the containers that are in full flower are containers with bulbs which have not yet flowered but soon will. In some cases, I have plastic tubs inside large terracotta containers so that when the spring bulbs have finished, I can lift out the plastic tubs and plant things for summer flowering.  When you only have small garden, (mine is under 30ft x 30ft) you have to make the most of the space you have.  A medley of spring bulbs in tubs on a sunny patio - early April At the end of February, I created a post showing the spring bulbs back then before the daffodils and tulips put on a show.  Here is...

Wow,  Tulip 'Mystic Van Eijk  is a showstopper.  The beautiful pale pink flower is held on a long upright strong stem and certainly stands out in a crowd.  Ignore images that show the flower is a strong pink as those images have been digitally tweaked, Mystic Van Eijk is a pale but not insipid pink.   Tulip 'Mystic Van Eijk Tulip 'Mystic Van Eijk Mine are grown in a large tub in full sun, somewhat sheltered by my small garden room.

This is the first time I have grown the narcissus 'Rip Van Winkle'. It is similar in height to Tete-a-Tete but has a double flower as you can see. It isn't exactly a show-stopper in my garden tub and I might replant it this autumn in the trough under my living room window where it will be at a height where the beauty of its flower can be better appreciated next spring. 

Scilla Forbesii (also known as Chionodoxa Forbesii) has a beautiful flower growing from a bulb. The flowers are a very striking blue and I have grown it (in a pot) for the first time in decades of gardening. I had never heard about it until the end of last year when I was hunting online for spring bulbs. According to the RHS, ( RHS link to Scilla Forbesii ) this little bulb is extremely tolerant of conditions such as growing medium, light, exposure, aspect and is hardy down to -15c.   Another name for it is Giant of the Snow as well as Forbes Squill, I kid you not. Scilla forbesii aka Chionodoxa forbesii

Scilla siberica bulbs put on a delightful show, especially the blue variety as the colour is quite intense. I am growing them in a container of compost along with Muscari which haven't yet flowered. Scilla siberica tolerates full sun or partial shade and mine are in a spot which is sunny for much of the day. However, as you can see from the below image, the blue naturally appears deeper with a bit of shade.   Scilla siberica Blue Scilla siberica Blue

I made the mistake of planting Crocus vernus 'Pickwick' corms in a bulb lasagne without labelling the bulbs in the lasagne. I must have been gardening in a dream that day.  Anyway, I managed to find the name of the below crocus by trawling through online orders and comparing images. Pickwick is a fabulous Dutch crocus with quite a large flower which makes it stand out in the crowd.  Crocus vernus Pickwick It grows in a large plastic pot of compost in a sunny position.  I thought a bulb lasagne was a great idea until the plants started to grow and some of the crocuses in flower got buried under tulip leaves.  I will remember later this year although I am thinking of sticking most of my spring bulbs in the borders for next spring.  Crocus vernus Pickwick