Journal of Thistles bulb experiment for spring 2015

[thistlebloom]

I like to be ugly in private too, Thistle! I really do love the idea of having them in pots. My mass planting of daffs (which is nowhere near 600) are planted under my hops. By the time they are ugly, they are covered in hops leaves. That worked out pretty good...Since you have a client who is looking for the wow factor- how about just cutting the leaves back, when they are done blooming and planting new bulbs again in the fall?

That would work for me! She may be happy to do that...I don't think the cost is an issue....multiple houses on multiple continents....

I like the idea of hiding the foliage, your hops vine camouflage sounds perfect. I've never been very successful at making that work.

 

[Jared77]

Wonder if you could buzz the ugly away with a weed whacker/string trimmer (whatever you call it to me it's a weed whacker) and so the ugly is shorter and it's easier for something else to grow over and cover things up.

 

[thistlebloom]

Well, you're not supposed to do anything to them until they are completely yellow.They're storing energy from the leaves back into the bulbs. When they reach that point they're real easy to just pull off.
It's that going to yellow stage that chaps my hide. It takes f o r e v e r .

Edit---This is weird, on the post it says "...oring energy..." but when I go in to edit it says "...storing..." so how can you fix an error when the edit version is correct/

 

[Jared77]

Good to know. I mentioned it because it seems yo be a common practice here in some commercial landscapes. At my place the rabbits and deer will make short work out of most bulbs. Hyacinths seem to be the only thing they leave alone so are the only bulbs I plant anymore....well those and iris.

Those are shorter so the yellowing phase doesn't last long.

 

[thistlebloom]

The experiment isn't going the direction I wanted! The weather hasn't cooperated at all. We've had little snow cover, and the snow that I was able to pile on the bulb pots has long since melted away. Even with an extra large tarp folded into layers and placed on top of the snow berm.

The daffodils are still dormant, and I hope not rotted, at least they haven't poked up yet, but the tulips are starting to pop out.

I have been pulling the tarp back at night to expose them to colder air and then recovering in the morning. The fact is, I don't really know what the best approach should be.

 

[ninnymary]

Can you put ice cubes on them to keep them somewhat cold? Just an idea.

Mary

 

[thistlebloom]

Can you put ice cubes on them to keep them somewhat cold? Just an idea.

Mary

That would surely not hurt! The trouble is it would take about 6 bags of ice every day to get enough in each pot.

 

[Smart Red]

Bags of ice under a white covering would last longer than just the bags of ice. Also, if you freeze the ice in Zip-lock or baggies, they can be refrozen and reused every other day.

You shouldn't need to cover all the soil on top to keep the soil cold.

 

[thistlebloom]

We're talking about 611 bulbs here.
I'm about positive that the clients won't be inclined to put a lot of dollars into my time on this, because of a previous discussion I had with them last fall
And while I would love to be the Garden Super Hero in this case and cheat the weather, I don't want to invest money and more materials of my own.
But I do appreciate the helpful ideas.

The tarp I cover them with during the day is folded into 4 layers and has the silver side out.
I just had a thought - I should put a thermometer under it also so I can see just how much difference it's making.

I went ahead and pulled the tulips out from under, they're beginning to grow anyway. I haven't charged the clients yet for the any of the soil or extra bulbs I picked up, so if the tulips keep on maintaining their growth I may just write them off and enjoy them at home for myself. Chalk it up to education or something.