Spring Bulbs

[pargyle]

Rather than starting a new thread i will add too this, out of the 400 crocus bulbs from gee tee that i planted are nearly all yellow, i got yellow/white/purple and purple and white, only the odd white and purple one have surfaced, have i been ripped of and sold nearly all yellow or do different colours flower at different times.
Thanks
Steve.

Oddly .. mine came from Aldi and Lidl and the yellow ones flowered about two weeks ago and the purples ones are just flowering now ... went to the RHS Garden at Wisley last week and they seem to have all the varieties in bloom at the same time ... as I'm an RHS member I may ask the question of them - why ?

So .. I would not give up hope on your purples one's yet.

Having said that ... my bees were all over the Hellebores in next door's garden during the sunshine this morning (that was before the rain and hailstones and the end of the world arriving !). So ... you might think about some Hellebores for the borders ?

"Hellebores find favour with gardeners and bees alike. The dusky dames provide nectar with a high sucrose content for the bees so is particularly valuable to them. Another feature of hellebores which is a bonus is that they can provide pollen even in damp weather and each flower maintains a supply for up to 3 weeks, a rare feature of any flower."

There are literally hundreds of Hellebores to choose from ... all good for the bees.

 

[Millet]

Oddly .. mine came from Aldi and Lidl and the yellow ones flowered about two weeks ago and the purples ones are just flowering now ... went to the RHS Garden at Wisley last week and they seem to have all the varieties in bloom at the same time ... as I'm an RHS member I may ask the question of them - why ?

So .. I would not give up hope on your purples one's yet.

Having said that ... my bees were all over the Hellebores in next door's garden during the sunshine this morning (that was before the rain and hailstones and the end of the world arriving !). So ... you might think about some Hellebores for the borders ?

"Hellebores find favour with gardeners and bees alike. The dusky dames provide nectar with a high sucrose content for the bees so is particularly valuable to them. Another feature of hellebores which is a bonus is that they can provide pollen even in damp weather and each flower maintains a supply for up to 3 weeks, a rare feature of any flower."

There are literally hundreds of Hellebores to choose from ... all good for the bees.

Thank you millions for that, i now have too put some overtime in to buy a pile of hellebores.

 

[pargyle]

Thank you millions for that, i now have too put some overtime in to buy a pile of hellebores.

The good thing is that, if you can be a bit patient, you can end up with a lot of Hellebores even when you start with just a few ... they can be split up, you can let them self set their seeds and transplant the seedlings or you can collect the seeds and grow them from seed. There's lots about doing this on the web ... but here's a useful link which gives you the bare bones:

http://gardenofeaden.--------.co.uk/2009/01/how-to-propagate-hellebores.html

Aghhh the forum police don't like the link .. you can guess what it is for a google search.

 

[Harley1]

Mine have also been very busy on the Hellebores over the last week. They really are good self seeders so no effort needed once you have them in the garden.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Rather than starting a new thread i will add too this, out of the 400 crocus bulbs from gee tee that i planted are nearly all yellow, i got yellow/white/purple and purple and white, only the odd white and purple one have surfaced, have i been ripped of and sold nearly all yellow or do different colours flower at different times.
Thanks
Steve.

I have the same collection from Gee Tee
The yellow ones come up first, then the white and finally the purple.
My yellow ones were at least three weeks earlier than the the purple. In fact the purple are all in flower and the yellow have all died back. So chill!

 

[Erichalfbee]

The good thing is that, if you can be a bit patient, you can end up with a lot of Hellebores even when you start with just a few ... they can be split up, you can let them self set their seeds and transplant the seedlings or you can collect the seeds and grow them from seed.

Husband and I are doing loads.
So easy to do and you get flowers when the babies are three years old. Try to get some H foetidus, the wild hellebore. They are very early and prolific and if the weather is good the bees love them

 

[Millet]

I have the same collection from Gee Tee
The yellow ones come up first, then the white and finally the purple.
My yellow ones were at least three weeks earlier than the the purple. In fact the purple are all in flower and the yellow have all died back. So chill!

Thankyou Erica. . you have stopped me from sending a complaint to Gee Tee.