THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 27, 1996 TAG: 9610250110
SECTION: HOME & GARDEN PAGE: G1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ROBERT STIFFLER, GARDENING COLUMNIST
LENGTH: 228 lines
FOR MORE THAN a century, the black tulip has captured the imagination of romantics. In 1895, French author Alexandre Dumas, best known for ``The Three Musketeers,'' wrote ``The Black Tulip,'' in which the fictional flower figures in an intriguing romance.
Still, today there is no black tulip. There are very deep purple and maroon blooms that appear almost black. One of the deepest maroon varieties, ``Queen of Night,'' is often called a black tulip. And there are others that are near-black: ``Burgundy,'' a deep purple-violet; ``Black Parrot,'' a violet-black; and ``Black Diamond,'' a deep mahogany.
Any of these dark blooms adds a dramatic element when planted in a garden of deep pink or bright yellow tulips.
Late October through November is the ideal time for planting spring-blooming bulbs in this area, so check your garden center or mail-order source to find some of these varieties.
If you get behind, you can plant Dutch bulbs up until about Jan. 15, if the ground does not freeze.
Few investments in gardening bring more color for your dollar than Dutch bulbs. Most repeat year after year and multiply over the years, so your investment grows.
Some hybrid tulips tend to be spectacular the first year but disappointing after that. Many gardeners plant them as annuals, removing them when their flowers fade and then plant new bulbs each fall. Dutch gardeners do this in their native land.
Frans Roozen, technical director at the International Flower Bulb Center in Hillegom, Holland, says: ``Choosing a garden's color combinations is what makes it yours. But it never hurts to borrow combinations that work for others.
``In the end, it's what pleases you that counts. Keep experimenting and please yourself. Most combinations end up right on target, but the occasional dud is always worth a good laugh.''
With some thought and planning, you can have Dutch bulbs in bloom in your garden throughout the spring season.
Here's a guide for continuous bloom:
When the first snow disappears, winter aconites and early crocus bloom. Winter aconites are yellow, and they're followed by large dark purple crocus, such as ``Lady Killer'' and ``Violet Queen.''
At our house, we plant large white crocus near our front door, which make a sea of white each spring. Every fall, I add a few more.
As the season progresses, Virginia Blue Bells begin to appear. Although sometimes hard to grow in this area, they will usually survive in a wooded spot.
Following them are Siberian Squill, a bright blue flowering bulb that repels some animals and is very dependable.
Next comes Chionodoxa or Glory-of-the-Snow, a bright blue, low-growing flower that likes to carpet a woodland floor. Sun or shade, they survive and spread every year. The brightest is a bright purple variety, which gladdens any spring garden.
Next come water-lily or Kaufmaniana tulips, usually creamy white with yellow. To emphasize yellow in your garden, you may want to add Tete-a-Tete, Yellow Cheerfulness or Jack Snipe, all early-blooming yellow daffodils.
A good mid-season, bright-yellow bloomer is ``Carlton'' daffodil. It's the one used by Virginia Beach's Operation Sunshine for plantings along highway medians and in public gardens. There also are new varieties that are only 8 inches tall, which are excellent for the front of a bed. The most dependable is ``Jetfire,'' with yellow petals and a red cup. Another is ``Foundling,'' with white petals and a pink cup.
If you want white, next in the bloom period are the white daffodils, such as ``Ice Follies,'' ``Mount Hood'' or ``Thalia.'' ``Thalia'' is a white fragrant daffodil that looks more like a small orchid. If you don't grow it, you should.
Next in line are the later tulips and hyacinths, creating a rainbow of color in any garden. ``Apricot Beauty'' tulip is a peachy pink that has been a favorite in recent years. Other popular tulips are ``Pink Impression,'' the 1997 tulip of the year; ``Angelique,'' a double late blush-pink, peony-flowered type; and ``Burgundy Lace,'' a fragrant red. There are also blue, white and yellow tulips, to create any color combination you might desire. One mail-order source offers ColorBlends, where tulips of complimentary colors are packed together by Dutch experts. To order a ColorBlend, call Schipper & Co. at (888) 847-8637 or write P.O. Box 7584, Greenwich, Ct. 06836.
Hyacinths, with their sweet fragrance, are next to color your garden in amethyst, yellow, blue, soft pinks and dark purple. Hyacinths sometimes to do not come back the next year in this area. It's best to try the variety you like for one season before buying dozens of the same variety.
To fill an empty space, don't overlook anemones, those funny looking bulbs that you can't tell the top from the bottom. They often are called ``windflowers'' because of their delicate foliage. Soak the bulbs overnight in water and plant them on their sides. Most will grow and they usually repeat year after year. Most common are bright shades of blue, red or white.
The spring bulb season normally ends with late daffodils, some that bloom even into June. There are many varieties and most catalogs as well as garden centers, list them by early, mid-season or late-blooming, so you can buy with that in mind.
Another late-blooming bulb that few people grow but is excellent is Spanish squill. It grows 10 to 15 inches tall in shades of pink, white and blue, repeats every year and looks much like a hyacinth, but taller and more dependable.
If fragrance is more important to you than continuous color, Dutch bulbs are some of nature's most fragrant early season flowers.
Here are some of the most fragrant: King of the Blues hyacinth; Erlicheer narcissus; Apricot Beauty tulip; Scilla Campanulata hyacinth; Cheerfulness narcissus.
A collection of 45 of these fragrant bulbs costs $29.95 from Gardener's Supply. You may also find similar fragrant collections in garden centers.
Immediate color inside
If your home needs color at once or you need a gift for a friend, buy an amaryllis bulb, now available in garden centers. The larger the bulb, the more flowers and stems it will produce.
Before planting, place the bulb and its dangling roots in lukewarm water for several hours. This is a good prep for planting. If the bulb cannot be planted immediately after purchase, store it in a cool area of about 50 degrees.
Plant amaryllis in pots slightly larger than the diameter of the bulb. Cover the bulb up to its neck with potting soil. Do not fill the pot with too much potting soil, or moisture-retaining compost. Leave enough room for watering.
Be careful not to damage the roots. Press firmly on the soil around the bulb to be sure it is steady. In the first few weeks, water sparingly until the bud and part of the stem have developed sufficiently.
If the bulb refuses to send out a shoot, coax it along by putting some heat under the pot, such as from a radiator or heating pad. Direct sunlight will help the plant grow properly. Within six weeks after planting, you should have flowers, sometimes before the leaves form.
When green buds and leaves begin to show, more water may be added regularly. Blooms should last two weeks, after which the stem can be cut down close to the bulb. After the weather warms up, put the bulb and pot outdoors for the summer.
The following amaryllis hybrids are recommended:
Apple Blossom, with large pink or white flowers.
Charm, a miniature variety with orange flowers half the size of standard varieties. Miniatures have grown in popularity because the blooms do not usually need staking. Some amaryllis have such tall bloom stalks that they require supports.
Cinderella bears large, red blooms, striped with white.
Red Lion has large bright red flowers.
Lady Jane bears large, double pink flowers.
Scarlet Baby is another miniature with red flowers.
White Christmas produces large pure white flowers.
An amaryllis in an attractive pot makes an ideal Christmas gift. Start one around Nov. 10 for blooms by Christmas.
How to protect bulbs
When you plant bulbs in the yard, you may want to protect your investment from pests. Tulips, hyacinths and crocuses make delightful meals for mice, chipmunks, squirrels, moles, voles and even raccoons.
There are many methods suggested to keep animals away. A gardener in Maine plants his bulbs with oyster shells to repel moles and other rodents. Hard, sharp-edged crushed oyster shells form a natural barrier that burrowing rodents are reluctant to cross.
Gardener's Supply Co. began testing this home-grown remedy by liberally sprinkling ground-up oyster shells in soil where bulbs were planted. The first year, bulb damage was reduced by more than 90 percent. They call their crushed oyster shells ``Bulb Insurance.'' They say to try it and let them know how it works.
It may not be as effective as poison bait, but there's no danger and you'll be adding calcium to the soil as the oyster shells break down. Five pounds protects 80 to 100 bulbs and costs $5.95.
A similar method that has worked for me is to line the planting hole with small rocks or gravel. Moles and voles find it difficult to burrow through, and the bulbs seem to thrive.
In addition, there are plastic ``bulb baskets'' that you place the bulb inside before putting it in a hole. I've found these are awkward to work with, because most measure 8 by 12 inches. In hard garden soil, it's often not easy to dig a hole 8 to 12 inches big and get it deep enough for bulbs.
Another protective methods is to place Ramik rat and mouse poison in the planting hole around the bulbs to deter voles.
When you buy Dutch bulbs, remember that they're priced by size. Small bulbs often need more growing time before they bloom, so if you buy a cheap collection, the bulbs may not bloom next spring. It's important when buying tulips, in particular, that they should be large, bloom-size bulbs.
Whatever you do, don't leave a bag of bulbs in your garage or refrigerator. They're better off in the ground, no matter when you plant. Lying around, they are good bait for mice or they may get soft and rot.
MEMO: To reach Gardener's Supply for a free catalog or to order its
collection of fragrant bulbs or its crushed oyster shell ``Bulb
Insurance,'' call (800) 863-1700 or write 128 Intervale Road,
Burlington, Vt. 05401. ILLUSTRATION: Color photos
[of flowering bulbs]
Graphic by Robert D. Voros/The Virginian-Pilot
Planting Holland Bulbs
Early Spring
Mid Spring
Late Spring
[For complete copy, see microfilm]
HOW TO PLANT
Bulbs should be planted with root end downward and growing end
upward. But it isn't always easy to tell which is which.
Look at your bulbs closely, and most will have a few roots or
nubs on one end. A growing point is usually formed and easy to see.
Tulips and hyacinths have a definite pointed end, which is planted
up.
With small bulbs, it's sometimes difficult to tell top from
bottom. Such little bulbs will adjust to be upright after they're
planted, so just scatter and cover.
It's smart to till the soil where you want to plant bulbs. Add
some all-purpose fertilizer, such as 8-8-8 and 10-10-10, or Bulb
Booster, a special bulb food.
Bone meal, long recommended for bulbs, is no longer a good plant
food. Bones are steamed in processing today, taking away much of
their value as a plant food. It's smarter to use a special bulb
fertilizer.
Drainage is important. Bulbs will drown and rot if you plant
them in a poorly drained area. Small bulbs, such as crocus and
snowdrops, should be planted 2 to 4 inches apart. Large bulbs, such
as tulips, hyacinth and daffodils, should be planted 10 to 12 inches
apart.
As to depth, plant large bulbs three to four times the width of
the bulb. If a daffodil bulb is 2 inches across, plant it 6 to 8
inches deep. Planting depth is very important for tulips. Some
specialists believe that if you plant tulips 10 to 12 inches deep,
they will repeat bloom year after year.
For smaller bulbs, plant three to four times the width of the
bulb. If a crocus is 1 inch across, plant 4 inches deep. Don't be
afraid to plant too deep. The bulb will still come up and often the
extra depth protects it from winter freezes.
If you don't plan to put your bulbs in the ground at once, store
them in the refrigerator until you can plant them. If you can't do
that, put them in the coolest, driest space in your home.
Fertilize one more time in the spring, when you start to see
foliage. Use the same fertilizer you used in the fall. by CNB