Early snow crocus and rock-garden iris took advantage of this year’s warm, dry February and March to bloom a month earlier than usual. Damaged only slightly by infrequent frosts, they carpeted the garden in gold, blue and purple for weeks on end. In fact, record- breaking warmth did more mischief than cold. Early tulips fried when temperatures hit 80 the first week in March.
A severe freeze in March that killed flower buds on a crab apple, a Russian hawthorn and a Kew broom also nipped in the bud most of March’s reliable tulips particularly cultivars of Tulipa humilis. Other bulbs didn’t miss a beat. We had one of the best shows ever from blue scillas; blue-striped puschkinias; variously pink, blue and white chionodoxas and Grecian windflowers (Anemone blanda); lavender-blue spring star flowers (Ipheion uniflorum); and white snowdrops.
April brought us scads of daffodils; hyacinths in a rainbow of hues; lavender, rose, salmon and orange Corydalis solida; fritillaries of many types but especially the slightly sinister snake’s head fritillary (Fritillaria meleagris); the only tuberous-rooted geranium G. tuberosum, a pretty little oddity with heavily veined violet flowers and silvery filigreed foliage; the green dotted white bells of spring snowflake (Leucojum vernum); colonies of nodding Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica); and yellow and white Tulipa tarda.
May belonged to a succession of florist-style big tulips on long stems but was also well celebrated by short-in-stature species tulips, a.k.a. rock-garden tulips; yellow Tulipa batalinii; the softly striped yellow, red and white lady tulip (T. clusiana); and pink and yellow T. bakeri “Lilac Wonder.” A few unusual bulbs joined May’s jubilee, among my favorites pure yellow Ranunculus gramineus, pale blue Camassia cusickii and the graceful mauve and beige bells of Nectaroscordum siculum. Ornamental onions begin their march into summer by the end of May with hordes of Allium aflatunense “Purple Sensation,” soccer ball-sized star of Persia (A. christophii) and corduroy-leafed A. karataviense.
June is dominated by the regal foxtail lily or desert candle, the Eremurus clan. With flower spikes 5 to 6 feet tall, these are sure to stop you in your tracks. While admiring the eremurus, don’t overlook the blue onion (Allium caeruleum), yellow lily leek (A. moly) and magenta and burgundy drumsticks allium (A. sphaerocephalon), not to mention the debut of Asiatic lilies.
If your garden is not as bulb rich as it could be, this is the time to remedy the situation.
Bulb catalogs have been arriving for months now. Order as many as you can afford. When they arrive this fall, plant them wherever you can fit a trowel in between other plants. Not sure whether the bulb you chose prefers it hot and dry or cool- shade? Do a little research online or at the library. Matching the bulb’s cultural requirements to your garden realities ensures you, too, will have a succession of low maintenance color next spring and for years to come.
Garden writer and lecturer Marcia Tatroe’s most recent book is “Cutting Edge Gardening in the Intermountain West,” ($29.95, Johnson Books). E-mail her at rltaurora@aol.com.
