I took special delight in my spring garden this year after being virtually home bound for several weeks with a mobility issue. When I did emerge from the house, the garden was awash with purple and pink tulips, yellow and purple miniature irises, the magenta blooms of a fern-leaf peony, the delicate blue flowers of the periwinkle ground cover, and purple Lamium. Add Virginia blue bells, a few columbine and young blooming lilac bushes, and it was truly wonderful. Most gratifying was the fact that this all happened with no special attention from me! My input had occurred years earlier when I had planted or transplanted all of these plants into my garden.
The tulips were planted at least 15 years ago. They have come back year after year since, but this year they seemed taller, stronger and brighter than ever. The trick to being sure that tulip bulbs flower in succeeding years is to be sure that the bulb is restocked with plenty of carbohydrates for the next season. The way the plant does this is through photosynthesis, after it has bloomed. Very often people wonder why their tulips or other bulbs fail to bloom after the first year. While there can be many reasons, the answer often is that the plant leaves are cut down after the flower fades, which means the bulb is unable to produce any stored food for next year’s bloom. Once your flower has faded cut the flower stalk only, before it has a chance to go to seed, (seed production will also use energy that could go into the bulb for next year’s bloom). Leave the leaves on the plant until they yellow completely. If the withering leaves are unsightly, try planting annuals around the bulb leaves. Bulbs are compatible with many annuals.
My miniature irises are even older than the tulips. I started with a half dozen rhizomes purchased from an iris ‘farm’ over 20 years ago. Over the years they multiplied and have been divided multiple times; I have shared them with several friends and now others are enjoying them in their gardens. Irises grow on rhizomes which are a thick fleshy part of the stem which grows horizontally underground, and produces both the plant shoot and roots. Rhizomes store both carbohydrates and proteins and allow the plant to survive underground in the ‘off’season. An iris rhizome will have a fan of leaves at one end and thick roots coming out underneath.
Iris can stand to be thinned out and divided every three to four years. The best time to do this is late July through early August. Lift the entire clump of iris with a spading fork, being careful not to break off the fat feeder roots. Wash off the soil and use a sharp knife to cut the rhizome into individual fans. Discard the centers of the rhizome which has no fans. Cut the leaves back to about 6 inches. You can store your remaining fans for a few weeks, give some away or plant them back in the soil immediately. Just be sure to get them planted in plenty of time for them to develop a strong root system and store up more carbohydrates for the winter.
The periwinkle (Vinca Minor) in my garden is a vine that serves as a ground cover. It is heat loving, drought tolerant and evergreen. Its dark green glossy foliage stays green over the winter and is covered with bright blue flowers in the spring, sometimes reblooming later in the summer. I started with three periwinkle plants over 25 years ago and it now spreads over a quarter of my garden. It sometimes grows where I don’t want it but it is easy to pull up when it misbehaves. Likewise, Lamium, sometimes referred to as spotted dead nettle, is a trailing ground cover. It has solid or variegated leaves of white, silver, green or yellow and the flowers can be purple, white or pink, depending upon the variety. It flowers from spring through late summer. Lamium is a member of the mint family and can spread by runners but it also a self-seeder. The Lamium in my garden was first planted over 20 years ago, a gift from a friend’s garden. I like to refer to both Lamium and periwinkle as living mulch. They serve the same purpose as mulch; keeping weeds from growing, and cooling and retaining soil moisture.
A fern-leaf peony is a shrubby plant with feathery green foliage. The flowers are peony-like and usually in the red shades. They are generally rather expensive to buy in garden centers, but over 20 years ago my mother received a gift of a division of the plant from a friend. Several years after that she gifted me with a division from that same plant and several years after that I gave a division of my plant to my son. So this is truly an “heirloom” plant for me. I am delighted every year when it blooms and I am reminded of my mother and I hope when my son’s blooms he will think of me.
So I am always delighted when my spring garden is in bloom- this year maybe more than some.
And if you do not have an “heirloom” garden, it is never too late to start.