Each Little World

Tulips survive on the island

My bright orange tulips made it through another winter and have come up with surprising vigor. The clumps are generally large and healthy and so are the flowers. That's something I did not expect, given the fact that tulips generally wither away with age. And that these particular bulbs are planted in poor soil, breathe auto exhaust 24/7 and get an annual top-dressing of salt, sand and road grit.

 

The city just repainted the traffic lines in time for them to harmonize with the tulips in this island planting and the Poeticus Narcissus, with orange and yellow perinanths, which are planted along the curb — just out of view.

This view shows you that the city has not, however, repainted the borders of the raised island bed itself. Its paint is chipping away in big chunks and strips. And you can also see that I've been rather neglectful of this bed, too. I have not trimmed back the dead sedum flowerheads and I've let the Iris germanica get totally out of hand. It likes this location and would happily take over the entire bed.

 

The tulip bulbs came from Brent and Becky's Bulbs and Old House Gardens and I've also written more about them (complete with close-ups of each variety and IDs) here. It appears as though I have as many bulbs in bloom this year as last — essentially the same number as I planted — making them continuing traffic stoppers! 
  

Bulbs: Traffic island update

When it comes to tulips, I've avoided them for the most part. Not having that much sun or that much of a penchant for bright colors. But then I bought an orange linen shirt. Could orange tulips be far behind?

I planted this group of 'General de Wet'  tulips (below) between two red barberries and two clumps of 'Black Parrot' tulips to tone them down a bit. Alas, I didn't write down the date they opened but it's easily been a couple of weeks that I've been enjoying their blooms — the benefit of a rather cool spring.

The spot that gets the most sun and could handle a dose of bright color is "my 'island garden." This is the full sun garden located in the center of the street in front of my house. Once the trees and shrubs leaf out I can't really see it, so I can go crazy there and not worry about color clashes with the main garden.

I was rather worried about what would happen this spring after the winter "traffic island tragedy" when a truck ran over the snow-covered bed and flattened the sign. Imagine my surprise — and dismay — when the city sent someone out to reposition the sign in January. They dug up the mostly frozen bed and stuck the sign in place with concrete. I feared for the plants but look what spring brought: 

Prinses Irene: "melon orange flamed with bronze purple" from Old House Gardens (above).

Orange Princess:  The double form of Prinses Irene (above and below) from Brent and Becky's Bulbs.

Sensual Touch: In bud and bloom in the following four pictures. Brent and Becky said "this 55 mph wonder packs a lot of bang for your buck." No kidding! It's a stunner and is lasting nicely as a cut flower indoors with orange Epimediums.

The island garden viewed from the street edge of my front garden with Narcissus poeticus 'Pheasant Eye' basking in the early evening sun (below).

It's always exciting when a garden idea works out just as you envisioned it. My island is the blaze of color I'd hoped to create with the tulips I planted last fall. They're almost stopping traffic with their fiery hues — nicely set off by the bright yellow traffic paint. 

Princess Irene is in the center behind the fan of iris leaves; Orange Prinses is behind Irene and to the right while Sensual Touch is in two clumps on the left. Still to come at the back of the island is a clump of Orange Favorite.

Bulbs: Strange and subtle

I love the most common garden plants, but I also love plants at the opposite end of the scale; plants with history, provenance, an intriguing name, odd shape or unusual color. I'm growing two spring bulbs that fall into the latter categories.

ODD SHAPE: Acuminata tulip (above and below) will amaze all your friends. Old House Gardens (where I bought my bulbs) says it's unknown in the wild and probably the remaining survivor from the early 1700s when "tulips like it were all the rage in the Ottoman Empire." OHG named it their Heirloom Bulb of the Year in 2004. 

Acuminata announces its presence even in bud. In bloom, its petals twist and turn and are as sharp as needles. A delightful oddity.

ODD COLOR: I've had Fritillaria pontica (below) in the garden for three years but this is the first time it has bloomed. Marauding rabbits kept eating it until this year when I caged the new shoots the moment they appeared. To be honest, it had been so long since I planted these bulbs I really didn't remember what they were.

I kept watching them emerge and get taller (to about 12"), waiting for a clue to their indentity. A few days ago I realized the flowers were almost open, but were so subtle I hadn't noticed. The bell-shaped flowers are mostly green with purplish-brown edges and one to three per stem. These Fritillaries are growing in semi-shade at the edge of path under the trees where they look totally charming.

If I had only remembered these bulbs were in my garden, then I would have partnered them with the Fritiallaria imperialis 'William Rex" I planted as an experiment last fall. It's a shorter (18-24") version of the classic Crown Imperial but  a "rich, dark, bronzy red," according to Brent and Becky Heath, where I bought the bulb. Looking at the photo on their Web site, I'm betting it would look great with the ponticas. I'll know for sure once King William blooms; then I can re-arrange the plantings and get it right for next year! 

Bulbs: Double Dutch

The showstopper flower in last year's Spring garden is wowing us again this year. I took the plunge in the Fall of 2007 and planted tulips for the first time in years. The all performed well, but the one that captured our hearts was “Schoonoord.” In 1935 Louise Beebee Wilder said it was “an old variety but invaluable.” It’s a flower that I've decided I never want to be without now that I’ve grown it.

The green and yellow striped buds open into lushly double white flowers touched with gold. Anyone who's seen them in a vase thought they were peonies. Since they first began to open, Schoonoord's drawn Mark and I out into the garden day after day in every light and weather to enjoy its changing beauty. Luckily I ordered enough bulbs that I felt free to cut as many as I wanted to bring indoors.

It came back this Spring surprisingly strong. And again, is so fetching that I think I must order more bulbs. Luckily they are currently listed on the fabulous Old House Gardens site. Now the big question is 10 more or 25? You know which way I'm leaning don't you?

Mark took photos of Schoonoord like she was our firstborn! And I kept sending him back to get just one more ...

Scott Kunst of Old House Gardens is such a sweet guy; he put a link to my column about Old House bulbs on his Web site. You can see what I said about some of their other bulbs here.

Hey, guys: This bud's for you!

Psst, buddy! Valentine's Day is almost here. It's a holiday that's fraught with tension, so it's never too early to prepare. I bet that you’re planning on buying your sweetie some flowers. Maybe not as dramatic a bouquet as in past years, but something to mark the day nevertheless.

She’ll be thrilled, but you should think twice about this behavior. Data from the Society of American Florists says that on Valentine's Day, men make more than 60 percent of floral purchases. Not a number to sneeze at, but guys, here's the problem: Valentine's Day only comes once a year. And new research suggests you are missing a golden (and pink and purple and blue and white) opportunity to win long-term points with your significant other.

Women not only like flowers, "they're physically and positively affected by a gift of flowers, and the effects linger on for days," according to research conducted by scientists at Rutgers University and quoted on a Web site designed to help guys harness their flower power: Saved by the Bud.

NETHERLANDS FLOWER BULB INFORMATION CENTER

If giving your partner one flower is a romantic gesture, then two are twice as nice. Forget roses and go for a dramatic pair like this Tulip and Hyacinth. 

The site is the flower child of the venerable Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center (NFBIC), which operates out of a small office in Danby, Vt. The organization created the site last year when it discovered that only 22 percent of flower purchases are made by men during the rest of the year.

Sally Ferguson, director of the NFBIC, pointed out in a press release "that even on Valentine's Day, men don't really know what they're doing. And they're not getting the idea that flowers can be their friend year round." So they’ve come up with the free Web site. There’s no advertising, and it's not intended to sell you anything. 

Of course, they do want you to go out and buy flowers, but only after you've checked out their information, illustrations and videos aimed at giving you a little floral sense before you open your wallet again. And given the state of the economy, this year they’ve added “Buds on a Budget” with loads of ideas for impressing your partner with your gesture rather than the total of your bill.

NFBIC

Quirky is always good. Three containers: same design, different sizes. Rocks in one, goldfish in one. Fill the tallest one with a dramatic red Amaryllis bulb — complete with dirt — and toss the plastic pot it came in. A little more time-consuming but worth the effort. 

Since the site was developed by the bulb industry, it obviously emphasizes bulbs: tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, lilies and dahlias, to name a few. But other flowers, like roses, are included as well. It covers buying, giving and caring for both cut and potted flowers. It also provides floral suggestions for specific scenarios like "her first visit to your place" or "you're in the doghouse."

Not a young, single straight guy? Not to worry. The site declares right up front: “If you are a married man, gay man, older man, straight woman, lesbian, or otherwise not a young, single, straight guy: This bud site's for you too!”  They just figure you’re probably not as clueless as their target audience.


That quote should give you a taste of the site's sassy tongue-in-cheek style — which makes reading it a lark. It does have great ideas, however, including many that will appeal to gardeners and floral designers as well. Some are really over the top but not impossible for creative types to duplicate.

NFBIC

Pick one kind of flower and stuff the container full of them. For the most impact, make the flowers and container the same color. Think brightly colored tin can — the kind that fruit or tomatoes come in — as the container.

FOR THE GARDEN GEEKS AMONG YOU: The Rutgers research pointed out that people have been cultivating flowers for more than 5,000 years — even though there is "no known reward for this costly behavior." In addition to the study mentioned above, a second study noted that a flower handed to a person in an elevator — man or woman — "elicited more positive social behavior than other stimuli." In yet another study, they found that giving flowers to older people (55+ age) not only elicited positive moods but also improved "episodic memory."  

This is pretty amazing stuff and helps to explain why so many of us spend all our free time in the garden. According to Rutgers, "flowers have immediate and long-term effects on emotional reactions, mood, social behaviors and even memory for both males and females."

That information begs the question, why isn't everyone out in the garden? At the very least, it suggests even more reasons for supporting your local independent nurseries, florists and public gardens and organizations.  

The above page gives you an idea of what to expect on savedbythebud.com.

Some parts of this column previously appeared under my byline in The Capital Times.

Rescued heirlooms

Scott Kunst conducts “rescue operations” on heirloom bulbs via his company, Old House Gardens. He notes that his bulbs are “rare, endangered, and in need of your help — since the only way to preserve these living artifacts — and their incredible genetic resources — is to grow them!” As a gardener and history buff, how can one say no?

I certainly couldn’t and did my first serious ordering from OHG last fall. The photos on the digital catalog are pretty amazing but I still wasn’t prepared for the reality my bulbs delivered last spring: from glowing colors to sweet fragrance.

I’m not sure what it means, but as I was placing my order this month I realized that I was mostly buying spring-blooming flowers in autumn hues: hot reds, oranges, apricots, plum and even brown!

Maybe that can be a new marketing ploy to help gardeners cope with having to choose spring bulbs just as fall arrives: Don’t think Spring. Instead, let yourself be inspired by the colors around you now.

The top image is Tulip Willem van Oranje (named for the founder of the Dutch Republic on his 400th birthday). The bottom is General Ney (after the general Napoleon called 'the bravest of the brave').