by Kate Wilson
As a mother of two young children, planning ahead and following through as planned is a sweet rarity. There are always well meaning intentions to do more, get more done whether around the house or being more focused on work, eating healthier, exercising, volunteering, socializing with friends….You get the idea and I’m sure you all can relate on some level. It’s focusing on the follow through that seems to be the constant struggle.
This notion extends into the gardening realm. Looking out at the garden I see perennials that need to be cut back, tired annuals, veggies that are waiting to be harvested, and a lawn that is looking rather weedy. In shorter terms, its fall clean up time! Realizing that my ”to do” list to going to take me most of fall to actually complete (click here for a more comprehensive fall clean up list) there is one stand out item on that list – Planting spring blooming bulbs.
Admittedly, planting spring blooming bulbs does not have any immediate reward. But once you get them in the ground, that’s it. You’re done. They do all the follow through. In fact, most of the time – with the above mentioned busy schedule- I forget about having planted the bulbs altogether.
Until spring! Once you see those green tips peeping out of the cold ground, you can’t help but get gitty with excitement and thank yourself for taking the few minutes it took to tuck them into the ground.
Here are some of my favorites:
Photo courtesy of oldhousegardens.com
Crocus. One of the first to come up in early spring. Reliably come back from year to year and look best in large groupings.
Daffodils. They reliably come back from year to year and gradually fill out. The dwarf all yellow are particularly cute.
Photo courtesy of easytogrowbulbs.com
Tulip mixes. This is one of the few scenarios where lots of color packed together works really well – take advantage!
There are loads more spring blooming bulbs out there and it’s always fun to experiment if you find something you like.
Ideally, September through the end of October (maybe early November if you’re desperate) is best to plant spring blooming bulbs. Rafiki (the Mandrill baboon from Disney’s Lion King) said it best “It is time.”
That facial expression also happens to be extremely similar to the one I exhibit when spring bulbs are a bloomn’ !
Happy Fall!
