The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
A time for everything
The garden is already a riot of reds, blues and yellows and thoughtful planting means they should all get their moment in the sun
We were blessed with a terrific display of tulips last year so we thought it would be a good idea to run with this theme by planting lots more bulbs in the autumn.
We are now reaping the benefits with an abundance of spring flowers all competing with each other for our attention.
Many areas have two or more layers of bulbs planted at different depths and different flowering and growing times mean this idea is working just fine. The winter border with cornus, willow, kerria and red maple has been underplanted with snowdrops and aconites (for a late winter display) followed by tulips for spring and then lilies, which will grow up through to give us a stunning summer show.
Another border with mass plantings of aconites has been supplemented with a drift of cyclamen which will grow once the aconites have died down for the summer. Normally the aconites are at their best from late January or early February till mid summer before they go dormant, allowing the cyclamen to flower in September through to mid winter then go dormant for the spring and summer. However, the recent mild winters mean none of them seem to want to go dormant, which makes for interesting gardening.
Another border packed with grape hyacinths has been underplanted with red and yellow tulips, which will flower just above this carpet of blue.
The display will continue into the summer as this border has a third bulb layer of oriental lilies planted underneath the tulips. Hopefully they will all live happily together.
The grape hyacinths are usually at their best in mid April but in mid March I noticed a couple of purple crocus in flower among them, unaffected by the leaves, which were still only a few inches tall.
I am now planning another layer of about 100 crocus bulbs planted among all the others to see if I can get in an additional flower display.
The blue spring flowers of Chionodoxa, Anemone blanda, Scilla and hyacinths are also adding to displays all over the garden and my purple tulip Negrita is accompanying the yellow flowers of Doronicum Little Leo.
A few years ago I noticed a very early dwarf tulip, Scarlet Baby, flowering in late February, which coincided with my yellow saxifrage drift, so I purchased
Blue spring flowers of Chionodoxa, Anemone blanda, Scilla and hyacinths are all adding to displays all over the garden
more of these tulips to plant alongside the saxifrage to enhance the show.
However, the very mild winter brought the saxifrage into bloom sooner than the tulip so this year they had a fortnight’s time difference. That said, they are still both brilliant to see.
Flowering trees are also giving us a great display with plums, cherries, pears and even my peach all in full blossom.
My new peach Avalon Pride has taken over from Peregrine which was devastated by peach leaf curl.
This one is resistant but it is also flowering very late so although I see plenty of bees around I am having to hand pollinate since the flowers are so small that I doubt if any of the bees will bother much with them.
Spring flowers continue with the white scented shrub Viburnum carlcephalum and Camellia Donation – a star attraction soon to be followed by a large Kerria japonica which has been allowed to grow to full size.
The garden displays will change as the rhododendrons and azaleas have their moment in the spotlight and looking further ahead I can see the first flower buds on my climbing rose Dublin Bay waiting their turn for attention as soon as we get a few warm days.
A garden full of flowers brings so much pleasure that I am happy to share these moments with anyone who wishes to visit so I will be opening the gate to visitors from next Saturday, April 29 to Sunday May 7.
Visitors can also view the artwork on display in my studio as I show recent paintings of Dundee town centre as part of my Lady in Red art exhibition.