Tulip splendor

05/11/2010

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After a recent trip to Germany, I was worried that I would miss my tulips blooming in the garden, but luckily I got home in time to see the new varieties I had planted. Each year I buy new bulbs for my container that graces my front steps. I then plant them in the garden in the fall. I always look for bulbs showy and flamboyant or unusual colours or interesting petals. Last year, these green and pink parrot tulips captured my attention at the garden centre. The ruffled pink petals edged with streaks of green are really quite stunning!  
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Bulb planting made easy

03/23/2010

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I finally managed to find some time to play in the garden on the weekend. Although my gardening to-do list wasn’t completed, I did manage to plant all my tulip bulbs. Every fall, I wait till the bulbs are on sale – by mid-October they’re normally reduced by 40 to 60% off the regular price. This way I can buy more bulbs, while sticking to my gardening budget.

When I worked at the Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) in Burlington as a student gardener, I had the pleasure of planting tulip bulbs in the Rock Garden. Each year, the Spring Bulb Display showcases over 100,000 bulbs, which are brought in from growers in Holland. After they bloom, the bulbs are dug up and sold at the RBG’s bulb sale. Now consider planting 100,000 bulbs each and every September….now that’s a lot of bulbs.
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Instead of using a trowel to plant the bulbs, we used a bulb planter. Now this handy little tool saves a lot of time. Basically you rotate the handle as you push it into the soil. Once you’ve reached the specific depth, you pull it out. The soil is securely grasped in the cylinder, leaving a perfect hole to plant your bulb. Once you’ve nestled the bulb in its new home, you squeeze the spring-loaded handle, and it releases the soil, tucking the bulb in for the winter.  If you’re wondering how far to dig the hole, the cylinder has gradation marks on the side for easy measurements.

This handy device makes bulb planting a breeze. I spent 20 minutes planting 40 bulbs on the weekend and that included watering the bulbs and cleaning up. Now all I have to do is wait for spring!

Originally published on http://www.canadiangardening.com/blogs/
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