Planting More Spring-Blooming Bulbs Around the Farm
My Bedford, New York farm is buzzing with activity this fall - television shoots, photography shoots, and lots and lots of seasonal chores.
My gardeners and outdoor grounds crew have also been hard at work planting spring-flowering bulbs. Every year, I order thousands and thousands of bulbs to add to my landscape. It’s so exciting to see the swaths of color in the garden beds after a cold, dreary winter. This season, I also ordered several thousand from Colorblends Flower Bulbs - a third generation wholesale flower merchant in nearby Bridgeport, Connecticut. Many of these bulbs were planted in the Stewartia Garden, in the tree pits under my stand of bald cypress trees, outside my Winter House kitchen, and in the sunken garden behind my Summer House. They will all look so marvelous come spring.
Here are some photos - enjoy. And don't forget to tune-in to QVC tonight at 9pm ET when I launch my skin care kits - part of my new Beauty Collection!
-
- After planting all the bulbs under my long and winding pergola, it was time to plant all my other spring-flowering bulbs around the farm. Ryan returns to the garden library, where it is dark, cool, dry and perfect for storing our bulb deliveries until they are planted.
-
- These bulbs in the bright yellow sacs are from Colorblends Flower Bulbs. This family owned business sells directly to professionals and ambitious residential gardeners. https://www.colorblends.com/
-
- Nearly every garden bed is planted with new bulbs each fall. Wilmer is adding some to the garden between my main greenhouse and gym building.
-
- This is what I call my Stewartia garden. It is still very much a work in progress, but I am so happy with how it is developing. A few thousand bulbs will be planted here also.
-
- Here is Phurba planting some of the smaller bulbs in this area. Each bulb is placed in a hole about three to five inches deep. The dibber is perfect for planting these bulbs.
-
- Some of the flowers in this garden include this pretty puschkinia. Closely related to Chionodoxa and Scilla, the Striped Squill is a deer- and rodent-resistant naturalizer named after Russian botanist Count Apollos Apollosvich Mussin-Puschkin. Puschkinia is best grown in moist, fertile, well-draining soil in full sun to partial sunlight. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- This is Blue Squill – excellent for naturalizing beneath trees that lose their leaves. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- These are the beautiful white snowflakes that pop up in early spring. These form clusters of small white bells on arching stems. They prefer full sun or light shade and thrive in soil that is too wet for most other bulbs. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- Ryan places some of the bulbs strategically around the garden bed – here he is in the bed behind the Stewartia garden.
-
- Other bulbs are tossed gently onto the soil – where they fall is where they will be planted, creating a natural growth appearance.
-
- Wilmer follows with the long T-handled bulb planter. This tool is best for planting larger bulbs that need to be buried at least six-inches deep.
-
- About 50-bulbs are planted in the tree pits under my great bald cypress trees.
-
- These are Spanish Bluebells. A shade-tolerant plant that bears spikes of lightly fragrant, porcelain blue, bell-shaped flowers. They are also ideal for naturalizing below shade trees. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- Ryan plants more bulbs on my terrace parterre just outside my Winter House kitchen. I wish I had more time to garden – the views are always so beautiful from this terrace.
-
- Ryan is using a stainless steel bulb planter drill attachment that pulls the soil out in a “core sample” type plug that can easily be dropped right back into the hole to cover the bulb.
-
- Here, we are planting “Purple Sensation” alliums – four-inch globes of rich purple flowers on tall stems. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- The outdoor grounds crew then moves onto the sunken garden behind my Summer House. There are about 100-bulbs in this bed.
-
- Phurba starts from one end – planting them one by one where they are positioned.
-
- These are medium sized bulbs – each with a root end and a pointed sprouting end.
-
- Always plant with the roots pointed downward and the pointed end faced up. If it is planted upside down, the flower will still grow, but it will likely take longer.
-
- These are trout lilies. Trout lily flowers provide a nice spark of yellow in the garden. The delicate blooms, which resemble turks cap lilies, shine in dappled light. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- Once all the bulbs are planted, Wilmer goes over the area with a rake, making sure every bulb is covered.
-
- Just outside the sunken garden, Wilmer and Phurba plant daffodil bulbs.
-
- Here we planted ‘Tahiti’ daffodils – double flowers of soft yellow accented by tufts of coppery orange. Tahiti is a favorite among commercial growers in Holland because it grows and flowers so well. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- Some of the other daffodils I ordered this year include ‘Delnashaugh’. These are double creamy white blooms with fluffy peach-pink segments. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- ‘Queensday’ is a double yellow named for the Dutch holiday that was long celebrated on April 30th – also deer and rodent proof. (Photo by Colorblends)
-
- And, ‘Sir Winston Churchill’ daffodils – each stem bears clusters of three to five white flowers with flecks of orange in the middle. Their scent is fresh and sweet. I can’t wait until spring! Have you planted all your bulbs? (Photo by Colorblends)
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
