After a long, cold
winter, you are probably anxious for the first signs of spring.
Springtime automatically brings thoughts of flowers. Choosing the best
flowers for spring can be difficult and it is often confusing. Perhaps
the most effective way to ensure spring flowers that bloom each year is
to plant bulbs in the fall to mid-winter. There are of course flowering
plants that you can purchase from your local nursery, but you will want
to make sure any chance of freezing weather has passed before planting
and in many areas of the country, spring does not arrive until late in
the season and by that time you will want to plants flowers in
anticipation of summer. You always have the option of purchasing bulbs
that have been grown in pots over the winter and are in stock in most
garden centres beginning in the late winter months. Here are a few
choices of flowering plants that are suitable to plant now and will
produce early spring flower:
Winter Aconite, or
Eranthis hyemalis, will give you yellow flowers approximately three
inches in height and resemble common buttercups. These particular bulbs
may begin to flower as early as January if you live in a warm area and
you will get the best results if you plant them in masses as they grow
low to the ground.
Glory Of The Snow,
or Chionodoxa luciliare, produce flowers that are bright blue with a
white centre. The plants will grow between six and ten inches tall,
making this particular plant very handy for walkways, borders, and rock
gardens. You may also be able to find white/pink varieties depending on
the area in which you live
Spring Snowflake,
or leucojum vernum, give you bell-shaped flowers that droop from the
green part of the plant. These plants will be six to twelve inches in
height and are white in color with small green spots on the ends of the
petals. You will get the best results if you plant them in clumps and
you can expect to see blooms in late February to early March. As with
any other springtime bulb, they are best planted in the fall but you can
plant in the mid to late winter if you purchase potted bulbs that have
already begun the growing cycle.
Netted Iris, or
iris reticulate, are wonderfully scented and are most commonly purple in
color, although you can also find light blue and white irises in many
areas. Irises are one of the earliest blooming plants and you can expect
a beautiful display of flowers in early March. As with any other type of
bulb, after several growing seasons you will have to thin the bulbs from
time to time, as they tend to reproduce rapidly and could actually begin
to stunt the growth of the plants due to over-crowding
Jennifer Houck is the
owner of http://www.bestflowergrowers.com Best Flower resource for
learning how to grow your flowers
