• Bulbs are certainly one
of the best garden buys. Even the most hopeless gardener can get a great display, at least
for the first year after planting. That's because the first flower is already formed in
the bulb when you buy it. So even if planted in the shade, it will still flower.
• Of the usual bulbs that folk in this
climate try, tulips cause more problems than any other. Most of them require at least 6
weeks in the crisper of your fridge in a paper bag before they are planted. That
replicates a northern winter, so they get tricked into flowering earlier in Adelaide. Left
to their own devices, they flower in September or even October and one hot day makes a
sorry sight of them!
• The exceptions to the fridge
'stratifying' process for tulips, are the species Tulipa greigii cultivars and some of the
new double cultivars such as 'Angelique' and 'Sven Dahlman'.
• If you plan to plant some bulbs and aim
to fertilize, you'd be advised to dig the soil now and lay your superphosphate and blood
& bone and leave the holes open for six weeks until you plant, then cover with some
sharp sand so there's no chance of fertiliser burn on the young roots.
• Daffodils, Freesias, Hyacinths, Dutch
Iris and Ranunculus, don't really need the fridge treatment, but there's no drama if
you've already done it! They'll just flower a bit sooner in the season. I think my Crocus
have flowered better from fridge treated ones, but there's not much in it.
• Everyone wants to know what the bright
cornflower blue flowering bulbs are when they appear. They are Babiana strict and come in
mauve as well. Very hardy scented flowers from corms, that will naturalise all too easily,
so be careful. Best in a pot if you are trying to maintain a native or low maintenance
garden or they'll run riot! |
