Comments on: Underplanting Hydrangea with Spring Bulbs

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:49:11 +0000

Shady Gardener, it is a lot of fun planting in the fall, and anticipating what the garden will look like next year. I enjoy digging in the soil, rearranging perennials, and adding new plants and bulbs. Then, next year, you get to see how the garden beds turned out, and how you might improve them. One of the great aspects of gardening, is that it is never static; Everything changes over time.

By: Shady Gardener

Shady Gardener — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:45:15 +0000

Northern Shade, You will LOVE the fruits of your labor this coming Spring!! And we will, too, if you post some photos. :-) How are you?? I’m sorry I’ve been negligent in my visiting. Busy days, I guess.

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:05:51 +0000

The Garden Ms. S, the spring bulbs give a big lift, especially when they pop up and bloom shortly after the snow melts. The Chionodoxa bloom right after the Galanthus (snowdrops) and Puschkinia (striped squills) in my garden. I watch for those little bulbs very eagerly in the spring, and make many trips out to watch their petals unfurl.

By: The Garden Ms. S

The Garden Ms. S — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:21:28 +0000

I love this idea of layering plants so they fill a spot at different times – especially something for the spring when we really need some colour.

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:21:36 +0000

Lynne, it would be easier to plant them when the perennials are initially planted, but the timing doesn’t always work, or I don’t think of the right combination at the time. I’ve managed to fit them into the spaces in between, but it would be more difficult with really thickly planted perennials with a mat of tough roots.

Rebecca, I like the faded blooms on the Hydrangea, when the rest of the garden starts to look bare. I appreciate the earliest spring bulbs after the bareness of winter, so I squeeze more in every year.

By: Rebecca @ In The Garden

Rebecca @ In The Garden — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:36:33 +0000

Terrific post, what a great idea to maximize use of space. The blue flowers must be stunning under the white blooms. I look forward to seeing your spring flowers. Your hydrangea still looks lovely.

By: Lynne

Lynne — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:28:17 +0000

I love all these ideas and haven’t yet planted bulbs this year! One thing I find very difficult in planting bulbs is doing so without interfering with my perennial roots. I get frustrated by this each year and end up planting a limited amount of bulbs.

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 23:20:16 +0000

Nell Jean, the 3 types of plants time sharing this space will probably enjoy the leaf mold, as it decomposes. I have some Scilla bulbs under other Hydrangea in the front garden, and they thrive too.

Deborah, the small bulbs can really disappear in the garden, you need lots for them to show, or to plant in small pockets by the door. The tiny bulbs, like Scilla, Chionodoxa, and Puschkinia are some of my favourites in the spring garden. I added to my other groups this fall too.

Martha, it would be great to plant them when first planting the Hydrangea, as you could do it with minimal disturbance to the shrub roots. I planted in pockets, to minimize disruption underground for the bellflowers and Hydrangea.

By: Martha

Martha — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:36:42 +0000

What a wonderful idea! I have a garden that I’m just building, so suggestions like this are exactly what I’m looking for! Thanks for sharing this.

By: Deborah at Kilbourne Grove

Deborah at Kilbourne Grove — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 22:15:04 +0000

The chionodoxa will look gorgeous when it flowers. I know what you mean when you say you could have planted another 50. I planted 50 scilla two falls ago, this spring it looked like nothing, so I planted another 100 this fall.