Of all fall garden chores, the one I like least is planting spring bulbs. I buy them as soon as they are on the market, but for weeks, the tidy labeled envelopes repose in the shed before I can muster the courage to plant them.
Since moving to a woodland lot a few years ago, I have had to wrestle with roots and stones that make the process more arduous.
There is also the psychological component. When you plant trees, shrubs, perennials, and annuals, there is immediately something to show for your labor. But with bulbs, there is nothing to see until the winter snows give way to spring sunshine.
Yet the eventual recompense more than makes up for the initial effort when the first snowdrop or winter aconite appears. And it is comforting to know that bulbs are relatively pest-free.
Snowdrops
Snowdrops and the later-flowering giant snowflakes are one of the first heralds of spring, blending ideally with woods, shrubs, and rocks. If picked in the bud, they blossom in the house, prolonging the blooming period.
Once established, a clump maintains itself, increases miraculously, and becomes more effective over the years.
Winter aconite is less satisfactory, although equally appealing. Instead of increasing, it tends to run out and eventually disappear. Connoisseurs assure me that it is simply not “happy.”
Crocus
Crocus I catalog as “homebodies.” They never seem at home fighting their way along woodland paths, so I put them near the house that provides protection and assures earlier bloom.
The lavender autumn crocus Colchicum, from which the standard gout remedy is derived, is in a class by itself.
They can be used as an effective indoor floral decoration to contrast with the seasonal chrysanthemum.
They provide no leaves of their own, except in spring, but blend nicely with cuttings of myrtle or ivy. A bulb with only sunshine for comfort will blossom on the window sill before planting outside.
Anemone Blanda
I use pale blue Anemone blanda in the rock garden or tucked along either side of stone paths for extra-early bloom.
Next comes spruce and sprightly grape hyacinths, whose clumps increase without lifting, and the reliable chionodoxa and scilla produce bulblets and seed themselves.
The taller, late-blooming scillas that run rampant in the English woods and meadows are known as English bluebells.
Although pink varieties have been developed, blue or white blends more naturally in the woods with the first colors of spring.
Hyacinths
Hyacinths are not suited for a wild place where natural and informal effects are in order.
They are excellent for formal beds and as house plants, but despite their ruggedness, early bloom, and fragrance, they always seem introduced by the hand of man.
An exception is the smaller, white Roman hyacinth, which, unlike the common variety, has several flower stalks on each bulb and is ideal for cutting. It has not yet achieved its deserved popularity.
Star of Bethlehem
The Star of Bethlehem also has a distinctive charm. In contrast to the common iris, bulbous varieties— Dutch, Spanish, and English—have attractive, graceful blooms and are effective in the early spring garden. They should be treated as bulbs and planted in the fall.
Fritillaries
Fritillaries are eminently suitable for the spring woods, as are the dwarf tulips, kaufmanniana, and chisiana.
I have used the more graceful Darwins with timidity, carefully selecting the colors with caution, determining where the clumps shall be, and avoiding straight-line planting.
Lily-flowered tulips are in a different class; their pointed petals look more like lilies than tulips. Rabbits also seem to prefer them.
Daffodil, Jonquil, and Narcissus
With daffodils, jonquils, and narcissus, plant lavishly from the new miniatures to the giant, yellow King Alfred.
They almost cry aloud to be transferred to the house, where they can be grouped in vases or combined with other flowering shrubs. In the South, this imaginative handling has developed into fine floral art.
The best way to select daffodils or jonquils is at a spring flower show with a pad and pencil and plenty of time to browse.
The next best thing is to study the commercial offerings and displays or riffles through a collection of garden magazines.
These bulb varieties are infinite, as are the shapes, blossoms, and color combinations. They survive and multiply readily.
Lift and divide if clumps become too thick after three or four years. Daffodils are ideal for bordering woodland paths or massing under trees; blooming before the leaves appear, they get plenty of sunlight.
Attracting the eye from a distance, even when looking out of the windows during spring showers, they bring the woods closer to the house.
44659 by Dale Warren