Tip Toe Through The Siberian Squill
Ladies and gentlemen, we have just enjoyed a glorious spring weekend. Much to write about, but I won’t attempt to cover everything in one post. For right now, I just want to talk about the flowers that, more than any other, define spring in this part of the world. Namely, bulbs.
The early species tulips are blooming lustily. Species tulips are a favorite of mine. The flowers are smaller but more interesting with great colors. Their best qualities are that they have smaller bulbs are easier to work into a mixed bed, also they are reliably perennial and will sometimes naturalize. Species tulips are first cousins to the wild tulips that grow from Central Asia to the Mediterranean.
If I say so myself, this combination of Tulipa praestans ‘Unicum’ (red) and Tulipa turkestanica (yellow and white) is very fetching.
The deep red Tulipa linifolia also does well all on its own.
Here’s some more T. turkestanica. This tulip and ‘Unicum’ are definitely naturalizing in my beds. Not all species tulips will naturalize, of course. I planted some Tulipa clusiana ‘Tubergen’s Gem’, and that particular tulip seems to have disappeared.
There’s also this little tulip, blooms very early on very short stems, almost ground level. I can’t remember the name, anybody have an ID?
Before I move on from tulips, I should mention the hybrid tulips I’m growing in containers. We’re still at 72 out of 90 tulips now up. Some may not have made it through the winter, or they could just be late varieties – too early to tell. If we did lose a bunch of bulbs, I will make a point of giving the containers more insulation next winter, and also maybe not using the smaller ones.
The daffodils are blooming nicely. Sorry to say I have lost track of the varieties there are in my garden.
I like the white and partially white daffodils.
Then there are the squill (Scilla sibirica). They are starting to naturalize in the front yard.
In the back garden, they’ve been naturalizing for a while. There is a stretch of Lincoln Park in Chicago where there is just a sea of blue from all the squill, for me one of the highlights of the season.
As I say, this weekend was so beautiful that everybody on the block felt compelled to go out and work in the garden. Even our neighbors’ dog Daisy wanted to experience the joy of digging in the mud. This picture was taken with Daisy looking up as Judy leaned over the fence we share with these neighbors.
Was your weekend as great as ours? I certainly hope so!
gardeninacity 
A fabulous weekend, here, too! Glad you had such a great tip-toe. Love your mudwonderful pooch.
She belongs to the neighbors, actually, ut we get to enjoy her antics.
I think some dog is in a bit of trouble! It was nice here, too. Unbelievably so! Actually completed a first pass on Spring clean-up. And most of crocuses are in full bloom.
Glad your winter has finally retreated.
Your tulips, daffodils, and squill are beautiful! There are definitely advantages to living in a colder climate. I have little success with most bulbs in my hot and humid garden.
But then, you have great color all year.
I always love the first few months of spring, your bulbs are looking great and so is the dog next door, bet your glad u don’t have a dirty pooch to clean up.
Judy would never accept a pet dog, she is a definite cat person.
Thank goodness for spring bulbs! They definitely fill the need for instant spring gratification. I don’t have any early species tulips but your photos are making me think I might have to get some 🙂
Oh, I highly recommend the species tulips.
Beautiful! Those tulips are breathtaking! Hope this starts a roll and no more rain! Our weekend was great. I finally got radiches, cucumbers and tomatos in the ground.
We don’t plant tomatoes and cukes until May 15th.
I have also spent the entire weekend in the garden. Potatoes are laid, dahlias also laid, and lots of other stuff done. I also like the botanical tulips. I´m waiting for some yellow ones that I plantes in the fall. Squill has such a beautiful blue colour.
I would love to grow some potatoes, just don’t have the space.
Glad you could get out into the garden at the weekend. It does the soul good! Ours was a little grey and damp, but the garden was relieved as we had a few very warm days last week. I do love those two species tulips together – the foliage really sets off their colours. And you have a lovely mix of daffodils… I must make a note to plant more this autumn.
It definitely refreshes the soul.
Your little tulip with mauve on the underside of its petals might be one I’ve seen in rock gardens, T. polychroma. Love the squill. More than 3 inches of rain for us, so no gardening in Upstate SC.
Thanks for the ID, I’ll check that. Why can’t they arrange for rain to occur only at night or during weekdays 9-5?
I love scilla too-as you say, large drifts of it are very beautiful. I planted some here two years ago and they are just starting to multiply.
Once they start, i think it tends to go at a geometric rate.
That is a dirty dog! But small enough to fit in the kitchen sink I hope! The bulbs are wonderful! There is a great site if you ever want to explore the names of your daffodils – daffseek.org
Thanks for the tip about the site – I’ll check it out. As for the dog, not sure where she gets bathed. Fortunately she is pretty small.
Lovely cottage garden with lots of bulbs. Wonderful Tulipas you have!
Thank you! Though you can never have enough bulbs.
Glad to see spring is alive and well and in your neck of the woods. I love spring bulbs that naturalize and oddly I don’t have any species tulips. I shall remedy that come fall bulb ordering time. Thank You!
Good idea! Great color and easy to grow.
Beautiful Siberian Squill! Got my falsetto and ukulele all tuned up and ready to tiptoe. Now where did Miss Vicki go? Daisy is adorable! Nice cock B.T.W.
Miss Vicki I think is with Johnny Carson.
I think i prefer tulips like this unlike tho most famous cup-like ones. But i love must those blue flowers, any blue flowers i prefer than most. But that ornamental dog is so funny especially at the contrasting mud. He is so white with that black mud.
I agree about the blue flowers, they are a favorite of mine.
What a mucky pup Daisy is!! The squill naturalising in the back garden is gorgeous Jason. Those species tulips are beautiful and certainly pack a punch!
Isn’t it wonderful to get out and about.
I know we’ve spoke before about your tulip containers – feed when flowers have gone over with half strength tomato feed until the foliage dies back. One of my pots of Queen of the Night has come up blind but the other has plenty buds….strange!!
Thanks for the tip about the tulips, I’ll try that.
It’s always the white dogs, no? I had two myself and the Samoyed loved to get her paws dirty, but the Akita was a bit crazy on keeping himself dirt free. Glad too because two white dogs all muddy would have been too much. Glad to see spring blooming strong.
We have never had a white dog but we used to have a black cat. Would follow us everywhere, garnering some strange looks.
I have a black cat too. Daisy is cute, but your neighbor must have had to give her a bath.
Fantastic blooms. I have to remember to buy some squills (spelling wrong). The weekend was fantastic indeed; in fact more or less everyday is now fantastic.
After such a long winter we can really appreciate the good weather.
It was a stunner of a weekend, wasn’t it? I was on the road to Minnesota and back all day Saturday, and in Milwaukee all day Sunday. The snow was just barely melted in Minnesota, but the Siberian Squill, Forsythias, and Magnolias (among many others) were putting on a stunning show in Milwaukee. Sigh. Spring fever is in full swing!
And as Milwaukee goes, so goes Madison?
Beautiful Jason!!! Can you even stand it!!! SO wonderful to have this weather upon us! Cheers and happy gardening! I have much to do!!!!
I’m sure you must! I hope you are done with flooding clean up and can now turn to the garden, which will be a lot more fun.
dirty but happy doggie! love bulbs that naturalize, they are delicate and look great massed, so different to the tulips you see in flower shops. I’ve never seen tulips naturalize here though.
For dogs I think dirty and happy go together.
Jason, I love scilla, it makes a blue spot in a garden. Your narcissus and tulip are wonderful and it doesn’t matter you lost the list of varieties! All your vernal plants look healthy.
I wonder if Scilla is really from Siberia, and if you see a lot of it there.
Ooh, I’m so glad I saw this. I’m planning on ordering some tulip bulbs for next year but I haven’t seen any as pretty as the one’s you have.
I’m sure there must be online retailers who would have lots of species tulips. As you are in the EU, do you get to order from Holland?
I presume I do, but I hadn’t thought of it. Is that where you get your bulbs?
Hello Jason!
Ooh how lovely spring flowers.
I love tulips, narcissi, daffodils …
I admire your beautiful photos.
I’m delighted. Real miracles.
I love your dog Daisy. It’s lovely.
He also loves your garden.
I wish you have a nice weekend.
The same to you, Lucja.
haha – That IS one dirty dog! I bet the owners were not too pleased! I love your tulips – the red ones are just gorgeous, and I like how you planted the red and the white ones together. Very creative.
Glad you like it. I just kind of mixed them up in a bucket and threw them in the hole together.
Gorgeous flowers… and then there’s that dog! How funny she is!
She is one funny dog.
I have Tulip turkestanica too, love it!! Hoping it returns again and again over the years.
I love it too. It seems pretty happy, coming back and also spreading each year.
Wonderful to see all the great species tulips as they just don’t like to grow here…