Spring Colours are Starting to Show
Saturday, May 5, 2012 @ 3:45 AM
Some of the local landscapes are already beginning to show colour. Early spring blooming bulbs that were planted in the fall, such as snowdrops, crocus, scilla, muscari, and a favourite of mine, fritillaria meleagris ( in photo at right), are already in full bloom and even some of the earliest blooming tulips and daffodils will soon be showing some colour.
Location of where the bulbs are planted will also affect when they come into bloom. Bulbs planted near a building, on a south slope, or in a protected area will bloom earlier then if they were planted out in the open or in a northern exposure.
Perennials make up a large part of many landscapes and some of the early blooming perennials are well on their way. I noticed that the ‘Pasque flower’ is already blooming in our flowerbed at home. Pasque flowers start off as fuzzy buds and open up to purple, white or red crocus like flowers with a yellow centre. They are sometimes referred to as Prairie Crocus.
Another perennial that is just starting to bloom in the flower bed is the ‘Elephant Ears’ (Bergenia). Elephant Ears are known for their large 8-10 inch leaves that remain throughout the year. Clusters of small pink flowers rise above the foliage on long stems. It is a nice plant to have in the flowerbed and seems to grow almost anywhere with very little maintenance
‘Lungwort’ (Pulmonaria) is an early bloomer that grows well in the shady part of the garden. It produces clusters of small bell shaped pink flowers that turn blue as they age. The plant itself has attractive silver/white splotched leaves throughout the rest of the season.
(photo Bottom right, "lungwort")
Primulas (Primrose) are another spring flowering perennial. There are several different varieties that are hardy enough for Prince George’s zone 3 climate, including auricula, and drumstick (denticulata) primroses.
Bleeding Hearts (Dicentra) are already well on their way and will be in bloom soon. There are several different varieties to choose from including the new variety Valentine that comes from a local Prince George gardener. The flowers are red heart shaped with a tiny drop that hangs from the bottom. They hang down from long arching stems that rise out of the foliage. Bleeding hearts prefer to grow in the shaded area of the flower bed.
If you are looking to add some bright yellow to the early landscape then you will want to add a ‘Globeflower’ (Trollius) plant. The flowers look like giant buttercups. They prefer partial shade and moist soil.
Lily of the Valley is one of those old time favourites that has been associated with spring. It grows almost anywhere, and when in bloom, the small white bell like flowers give a nice sweet smell to the air.
An early blooming ground cover is the Creeping Phlox. It won’t be long and rock gardens will be covered with mats of colour. The flowers are small but there is lots of them in pinks, white, purples, red, and bi-coloured colours.
CandyTuft is a low growing perennial that produces lots of clusters of small white flowers in the spring and even when it is not in bloom the plant remains attractive as the small green foliage stays green throughout the year, if it gets the needed snow cover to protect it.
If you are wanting to add some colour to the spring landscape these are some of the perennials that can be added to flowerbeds.
-Jos
Jos Van Hage owns and operates two Art Knapp Home and Garden Centres in Prince George:
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Highway 16 West at Kimball Road
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Highway 97 North at Northwood Pulpmill Road
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