Tulip Design 3.0

My history of designing with tulips has been pretty rocky, with as many failures as successes.  This streamside scene from 2004 looks nice with pink lily-type tulips actually blooming at the same time as the multiple-blooming variety 'Georgette.'  Unfortunately, the Georgettes then morphed into a gaudy orange-and-yellow striped look that clashed big-time with the pink.  So even the successes are pretty fleeting.

What I do in this border is to show off a new combination of tulips every year, which I then pluck from the ground as soon as they finish blooming.  Wasteful, you say?  Maybe, but A, the foliage is too ugly for such a prominent place;  and B, they don't return reliably the next year, which makes it impossible to create a new design in that area. So this border gets a new crop every year, which I sometimes then move to a less conspicuous place where they can mix and match and run riot for all I care.  Cost-wise, the 30 to 50 tulips can be had for $20-40, which ain't bad for a gorgeous show that lasts for weeks.

This year I used a group of 4 tulips that I thought all bloomed together and three of them actually did - two multi-flowering types and a single late - but the Darwin 'Pink Impression' had already faded. The overall effect - viewed by the 700 people touring through my garden the first weekend of May - was pretty awful.  Too damn busy.

Now, because I learn from all my gardening mistakes - I wish - I've pared the design down even farther and next spring it's going to look PERFECT.  I chose three types of single lates, timed to bloom after the daffodils are gone: the purple 'Cum Laude,'  pink 'Esther,' and, not shown here, a pale yellow 'Francoise.'  Boy, next spring is going to be fabulous.

Comments

[MistressMary]

I can't wait to see it. Your garden is amazing.

[Susan]

Thanks, Mary. You're invited to my first open garden of 2006.

[Kasmira]

I love the tulip pic. Thanks for linking it to a larger version. I tried to find a bigger image in your photo album but couldn't. I'll definitely save this in my "inspiration" folder.

I agree that the cost to replace your tulips every year isn't outrageous, but do you mind the digging? Perhaps your soil is so well worked that replacing the bulbs is an easy chore?

[Sandy]

It is going to be fabulous! I am waaaayyy too cheap to buy bulbs in mass.

[Zoey]

Susan, I think that setting is quite beautiful. I can't wait to see it next spring if you say it will look even better!

(I am attempting to use my blog address instead of the fake email)
Hope it works. Didn't work. I guess I have to use both.

[Susan]

Aren't photos great? They preserve the very best angle on the very best spot at the very best time. And digital is amazing fun.
Anyway, Kasmira asks a good question and anywhere else in my garden it would be tough. This border was a valley that I filled in with topsoil and compost, so it's wonderful to dig in.
What is anybody else doing with bulbs this fall?