Ben was joking about male answer syndrome WRT this comment. I will add:
We've planted a lot of bulbs over the years, and the small things like snowdrops, scilla, puschkinia, chinodoxa, bluebells, ipheon, crocus (spring or fall) and grape hyacinth (muscari) have stuck around and spread the best. Any daffodil marked "good for naturalizing" is also a good choice. Alliums (flowering onions) are super-easy and come in a zillion varieties. Lily of the valley is so easy that it's downright invasive. Most if not all of these are not bothered by critters.
What I do for care: get a bag of bulb fertilizer, and mix some into the soil when planting bulbs, and water in well (or plant when it's going to rain.) Then, every year, when they are done flowering but the leaves are still green, sprinkle a little bulb fertilizer around them on a rainy day, because good healthy foilage one year means more flowers and more naturalizing the next. (If you miss a year, it won't kill them.)
I would call the folks at Messelaar to ask what they have; they will be a tiny bit more expensive than Home Depot, but their bulbs are top-quality and the more you buy, the more of a discount they give, and they know *everything* about bulbs. A drive to their store is also a nice touristy thing during fall colors season.
Also: daylilies! Absolutely 100% the easiest flowers to grow; plant 'em, water during the first year, and they will stick around for decades; in fact, you can dig them up every few years and split them apart and give the extras to friends. And nothing -- I mean nothing -- eats them. The cheapies at Home Depot or Lowes are fine, or you can get creative and order from R. Seawright Daylilies which is in our area, or Tranquil Lake in Rehoboth, MA, or go visit either place.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2010-09-25 03:49 pm (UTC)We've planted a lot of bulbs over the years, and the small things like snowdrops, scilla, puschkinia, chinodoxa, bluebells, ipheon, crocus (spring or fall) and grape hyacinth (muscari) have stuck around and spread the best. Any daffodil marked "good for naturalizing" is also a good choice. Alliums (flowering onions) are super-easy and come in a zillion varieties. Lily of the valley is so easy that it's downright invasive. Most if not all of these are not bothered by critters.
What I do for care: get a bag of bulb fertilizer, and mix some into the soil when planting bulbs, and water in well (or plant when it's going to rain.) Then, every year, when they are done flowering but the leaves are still green, sprinkle a little bulb fertilizer around them on a rainy day, because good healthy foilage one year means more flowers and more naturalizing the next. (If you miss a year, it won't kill them.)
I would call the folks at Messelaar to ask what they have; they will be a tiny bit more expensive than Home Depot, but their bulbs are top-quality and the more you buy, the more of a discount they give, and they know *everything* about bulbs. A drive to their store is also a nice touristy thing during fall colors season.
Also: daylilies! Absolutely 100% the easiest flowers to grow; plant 'em, water during the first year, and they will stick around for decades; in fact, you can dig them up every few years and split them apart and give the extras to friends. And nothing -- I mean nothing -- eats them. The cheapies at Home Depot or Lowes are fine, or you can get creative and order from R. Seawright Daylilies which is in our area, or Tranquil Lake in Rehoboth, MA, or go visit either place.