Northern Shade Gardening

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica striped squill flower closeup

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica (striped squills) flower after my spring crocus with charming blue stripes on a white background. From a distance, the effect is of a pale blue flower, but up close you can see the perky blue stripes on both the back and front of the light coloured petals.

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica striped squill with Pulmonaria

Here the Pucschkinia are flowering with the fresh foliage of the Pulmonaria (lungwort). The stripes of the squills look good with the speckles of the perennial Pulmonaria leaves. The bulbs also come in an all white version, Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica ‘Alba’, if you don’t want blue in your colour scheme (but that’s hard to imagine). I have some of the all white Alba next to the striped flowers in another garden section.

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica with Scilla and Chionodoxa bulbs

These  are planted with some other flower bulbs, some pure blue Scilla (squills) and some pure white Chionodoxa luciliae ‘Alba’ (white glory of the snow). I really like the blue, white and blue striped bulbs together. The striped squills are at the back of the picture, with the blue squills on the left, and the glory of the snow at the front. The glory of the snow more commonly comes in a very pretty blue colour, which I have planted in some other garden beds.

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica white and blue striped flower bulbs

In the photo above you can see that the striped squills have a slight resemblance to their distant relations, the hyacinths, although they don’t have the scent of their larger cousins. The groups of 5 petals face out in all directions around the stalks, which gives them a full look. Each bulb sends up multiple stems, so the whole patch gives a good display.

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica striped squill in flower

These Pucschkinia are getting a sun bath, as the light filters through the bare branches of a tree. They handle shade fairly well, but seem to appreciate the part sun they get here before the tree fully leafs out. Another grouping gets an eastern exposure, with just some morning light, and they do very well, too. I have another cluster of them planted on the north side of my house, with almost no direct light, and they have been flowering well for a number of years. In the deeper shade they do get a little floppier after a few days.

Puschkinia scilloides var. libanotica pretty spring flower bulbs

It works well to plant these flower bulbs next to some perennials that come up later, so they fill the bare areas in spring, and the rising perennials will hide the decaying bulb foliage. I have some striped squills next to some ferns, that are slower to come up, and also next to some Epimedium (bishop’s cap).

Pucschkinia are robust bulbs that return reliably, even after a zone 3 winter. Some springs they get snowed on, and they just shrug it off, and keep flowering. They really don’t require much in the way of care, other than being planted in the fall, and then the pretty blue striped flowers appear in spring for a number of years. Here is another article showing Puschkinia.

carpet of Crocus vernus in purple and white

Crocus vernus (large Dutch crocus) make a great display when planted in a large group. These crocus have come back with more blooms and larger than last year. The abundance of colourful petals makes me smile every time I observe them out the window, or stroll to this side of the garden.

Crocus vernus 'Remembrance' with pollinator

Gardeners aren’t the only ones who appreciate crocus. Many pollinators have been buzzing around these flowers, including lots of bees and bumble bees. This one carries lots of pollen on its fuzzy back.

Crocus vernus 'Remembrance' closed and open purple flowers

Crocus vernus ‘Remembrance’ is  a solid, saturated purple, with a bright orange contrast of pistil and anthers in the centre. I’ve put a shot of the closed buds at the top of the photo, and the open flowers underneath. This area is shaded early in the day, so the petals unfurl by late morning. Even the closed petals are quite pretty, but the open petals really fill the space. This colour looks great next to the striped purple crocus.

Crocus vernus 'Pickwick' flowers closed and opened

Crocus vernus ‘Pickwick’ is a light purple, with darker purple stripes. Like ‘Remembrance’, they have large showy flower cups. When the sun is lower, and the petals are folded upright, they look a little more blue, like the top part of the photo.These are great looking crocus, and coordinate beautifully with the solid white and purple crocus. Adjacent to golden crocus they really pop.

Crocus vernus 'Striped Beauty' open and closed flowers

Crocus vernus ‘Striped Beauty’ is very similar to ‘Pickwick’, with purple stripes. In the garden they are pretty much interchangeable. My ‘Striped Beauty might be a little lighter in colour. As you can see at the top of  the picture above, the closed blooms appear a bit more blue than purple.

Crocus vernus 'Silver Coral' open and closed flowers

Crocus vernus ‘Silver Coral’ have white petals, with a dark purple base. When they are folded up, the purple is more noticeable, and coordinates well next to the purple ‘Remembrance’. These look terrific combined with the solid purple and striped purple crocus.

Crocus 'Yellow Mammoth' in sun

Crocus ‘Yellow Mammoth’ is the sunniest, brightest gold colour. These are extra cheerful, and look super combined with purple crocus.’Yellow Mammoth’ opens a little after the the Crocus vernus start, but have a good overlap in bloom time. They will be the last crocus flowering.

crocus flowers under branches in spring

The crocus are planted under a lilac. They are spaced in between perennials, which will take over the flower show in another month. Despite being planted in pockets, they make a full arrangement of blooms, looking like a series of bouquets. You can barely see the narrow green leaves, with central white stripe, because of all the flowers. The ‘Yellow Mammoth’ were just coming out in the picture above, but now they too are large bouquets.

Crocus vernus in purple and gold with Crocus chrysanthus at back

This photo shows some Dutch crocus at the front, packed with flowers, with the Crocus chrysanthus (snow crocus) behind. Because of the way the deep  snow melted this year, the snow crocus blooms were a little delayed, so the both the early snow crocus and later Dutch crocus bloomed around the same time, making for a good bulb display.

Crocus vernus large dutch crocus mixed flowers

The crocus colours coordinate so beautifully together to make a lively spring show. What a glorious start to the flower parade. Many of my other plants have more subtle flowers, or beautiful leaf patterns, but the crocus start the season with a cymbal crash, saying winter is over.

You can see more Crocus vernus pictures from last spring. In the garden section I’ve shown here, there are around 200 of the Dutch crocus and 200 of the snow crocus. While across a narrow path, there is another group of 200 crocus bulbs that I planted last fall. They may only bloom for three weeks or so, but the vivid display in early spring is well worth all of the fall bulb digging.

I’ve made a gallery to show a number of Crocus vernus pictures from this spring. You can click on any of the small photos and they will enlarge to full size.

Crocus chrysanthus snow crocus with yellow and light blue flowers

Crocus chrysanthus (snow crocus) are one of the first bulbs to flower in spring, with delicate little petals in cheery colours. The only bulbs in my garden that flowered earlier this year were the Galanthus (snowdrops). I look forward to the sight of all of these miniature flowers appearing as the snow melts. Crocus vernus (large Dutch crocus) flowers are double the size of the snow crocus. However, even though each snow crocus flower is small, as a large drift they make a wonderful patchwork of colour against the brown of  last fall’s leaves.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Gipsy Girl' sunny yellow flowers with maroon stripes

Crocus chrysanthus ‘Gipsy Girl’ has medium yellow petals, and on the outside there are zippy maroon coloured stripes that show up well when the petals are closed. In the brightest light of day, the petals open wide to show a glowing yellow, and the contrasting stripes are not very visible. Instead, there are  golden anthers in each cup.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Gipsy Girl' with closed petals in gold and maroon

In early morning,  evening, or on a cloudy day, the petals fold upright, so the stripes on the outside make them a little more flamboyant. In the picture above you can see how the coloured lines curve up to the petal tips.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Gipsy Girl' in front with 'Blue Pearl' behind

Here you can see a group of yellow ‘Gipsy Girl’ snow crocus  in the front, with the pale blue colour of ‘Blue Pearl’ behind.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Gipsy Girl' with Crocus chrysanthus'Blue Pearl'

Above you can see the petals of  ‘Gipsy Girl’ opening as the sun hits them. Last year, the ‘Gipsy Girl’ and the similar looking ‘Fuscotinctus’ crocus were about the same size, but this year the  ‘Gipsy Girl’ flowers are almost twice as big. If I plant any more next fall, I would go with ‘Gipsy Girl’ instead of Fuscotinctus’.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Fuscotinctus' yellow flowers

Crocus chrysanthus ‘Fuscotinctus’ is another snow crocus with a bright yellow colour embellished with contrasting maroon stripes on the outside of the petals. The petals are a little darker than ‘Gipsy Girl’, so if you want a more golden coloured snow crocus these are a good choice.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Cream Beauty' flowers with butter yellow petals

Crocus chrysanthus ‘Cream Beauty’ has delicate shadings of soft, butter yellow and cream. These look great with other darker yellow flowers, or with light colours like ‘Blue Pearl’.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Cream Beauty' flowers in dappled light

Here the Crocus chrysanthus ‘Cream Beauty’ have a bit of dappled light, under the bare branches of a maple tree. The crocus would not be as decorative in the shade, with their petals always folded, but in early spring, they do well before the leaves come out on the trees.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Blue Pearl' flowers

Crocus chrysanthus ‘Blue Pearl’ is a real chameleon of a crocus. In bright light it looks all white, with no hint of its name. However, when the sun is low, or with a few shadows, it can appear very blue. The outside of the petals are more blue, so the colour is more pronounced when they start to fold in dimmer light.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Snow Bunting' snow crocus in white

My Crocus chrysanthus ‘Snow Bunting’ flowered first this year, perhaps because the snow melted a little quicker in this area of the garden. Their white petals are beautiful in the bright sun, and they show up perfectly against the dark earth. Inside at the base, the bottom of the petals have a gold coloured ring to match the anthers.

Crocus chrysanthus snow crocus in yellow and light blue

These crocus are planted in between hardy geraniums, which are still underground. I planted these in holes dug around the perennials,  around 15 to 20 per hole. There are around 200 Crocus chrysanthus, and 200 Crocus vernus in this section.  As the crocus fade away through spring, the geraniums start emerging, and cover the fading bulb foliage. In the centre is a lilac, with leaf buds that are just starting to swell. The layering of a small lilac shrub above,  hardy geranium ‘Rozanne’ perennials under, and snow crocus and Crocus vernus (large Dutch crocus) bulbs between has been very successful, and one that I can recommend. Here are some more Crocus chrysanthus photos and information from last year.

Crocus chrysanthus 'Cream Beauty' snow crocus with Crocus vernus behind

I’m very pleased with how the cheery little snow crocus are flourishing. They have come back with more and larger flowers this year, despite a harsh winter. Since some bulbs tend to fade away year after year, it is great to see the snow crocus getting better as they settle in. They make a wonderful start to the gardening year.