Last year I cleared an area for a cutting garden. I have several beds laid out mostly for annuals. One bed is for tulips. I was not planning on tulips for the cutting garden but last Autumn my husband bought me a dozen bulbs each of 8 different varieties. Of course I got to plant all 96 bulbs but now he gets the job of trying to keep the deer and rabbits from enjoying them.
There are different heights, different colors, different heights of tulips. Some even have variegated leaves.
It has been so cold, windy and rainy off an on so I have not yet gotten around to cutting any tulips for a vase since they started blooming. And so far I think only 8 tulips have been munched by deer and rabbits.
The Virginia Bluebells are starting to open.
The Grape Hyacinth are blooming in the fairy garden.
I'm glad to see the Hellebore has survived the rabbit attacks. I just love Hellebores.
The Fritillaria are in bloom. The deer and rabbits don't bother this variety as much as they do the Michaelmas Fritallaria which were eaten to the ground before they ever started blooming.
I have little patches of this type of daffodil here and there in several grassy areas. I did not plant them in the grass - evidently the fairies did at one time.
In the veggie garden some of the hills of potatoes have some leaf growth...
And the Sugar Snap peas have sprouted along a couple of trellises (as well as the dandelions, I see).
Most of the seeds I winter sowed in February have sprouted.
A lot of the seeds I winter sowed need cold stratification. I've been winter sowing seeds for a number of years. Most of the ones I sowed this year will go into the native wildflower area.
In early April I sowed the brassicas - brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli - in water jugs and most of those seeds have sprouted.
We had heavy rains yesterday and I woke up to a cold 37 degrees so even though it will be sunny today I don't think I'll be able to work out in the gardens. And then rain is predicted for the rest of the week I think.
And so it grows.
9 comments:
Your tulips are beautiful! Some deer deterrents that I know of are human hair, preferably before washing, Irish spring soap, and human urine around the border. Oh, also milorganite fertilizer. Not all choices work in all areas. Good luck if you try any.
It's always so enjoyable to see the green and growing things! Your tulips are beautiful! Good luck with this year's vegetable garden, too. I'm looking forward to a little planting here soon!
Oh for the love of tulips they are so pretty! Admire your gardening.
With your starting seeds inside is the way to go in these colder shorter growing seasons
like here in MN. Haven't done any this year. Your water jugs is a new to me way
but will keep it in mind.
What beautiful flowers!!
WE got rain too - and I don't know what its like there - but we were all happy rain dancing ;-)
I love springtime when all the green things start to grow again . . . beautiful tulips (what a lovely gift from your husband).
thanks for the tour of your garden! I love flowers and plants but have a very brown thumb...
How fun! I can't wait to see how the water jug plants get into the garden!??!
I did not know that there was a variety of tulip with variegated leaves. Cool!
I sowed my snow pea seeds and only a few are sprouting. The darn turkeys got to the rest before I could get fencing up. Grrr! But it is not too late to try again.
I always enjoy visiting your garden! Thanks for sharing! :)
Your spring flowers are a welcome sight. No tulips here because of the deer. The Fritillaria meleagris have been nearly wiped out by red lily beetles except for one that was relocated to a different garden by the squirrels or chipmunks. I also Have Fritillaria Perisca which get big enough that the lily beetle can't destroy all of them. Not sure what happened to the forsythia. There were very few blooms this year even though we didn't have an extended very cold weather. Dwarf white iris are just beginning. Good luck getting the winter sown veggies transplanted.
Pat
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