Download Beyond Daffodils - Quintessential Barrington

At H ome
by Alison Hoffman
summer or bulb could rot. These do well in large
drifts under deciduous trees on a hill and are also
lovely in rock gardens and containers.
Grecian Windflower – Anemone blanda
Daisy-like pink, white, and blue quarter-sized
flowers with yellow centers that open in day and
close at night. The 6-8” clump will bloom above
ferny foliage that goes dormant in late May. Windflowers prefer full sun but will grow in partial shade
in well drained, limey or neutral soil that will be dry
in summer. When happy, windflowers will naturalize over the years and create sheets of color.
Summer Snowflake – Leucojum aestvum
Looks like a giant snowdrop that blooms in
April. Two to seven small nodding white bells
Photo: istock.com/Kenneth Keifer
with green tips on 18-24” stems with deep green
strap-like foliage that dies down in late May. This
is one of the few bulbs that can do well in wet,
poorly drained soils as well as a dry location.
Works well with ornamental grasses.
Summer Bulbs: Bloom in May
through July
Camass – Camassia leichtlinii Beyond Daffodils
L
Hardy Bulb Options for Barrington Gardens
ooking for additions to your
Spring Bulbs: Bloom in February
garden that are as easy to grow, long-
through April
lived, and as resistant to deer, chipmunks,
Winter Aconite – Eranthis hyemalis and squirrels as the daffodils we see every spring?
Gold, sweet-smelling tiny buttercup-type
There are dozens of bulb options that, planted in
blooms the size of a quarter on a 3” stem with a
the right place, will provide you with years of en-
ruff of green foliage beginning in February and
joyment beginning in earliest spring and continu-
continuing through March. After blooming, the
ing through fall. Here are nine of my favorites.
whorled foliage will enlarge and become an at-
Showy white or violet-blue 3-6” long flower
spikes that bloom on 2-3’ stalks. Leaves are linear
and held at 45-degree angle from the flower stalks.
Camass grows in rich deep soil in full sun to part
shade and is one of the few bulbs that will grow in
poorly drained clay soil. Keep it moist when growing, but it can tolerate drought when dormant.
Great bulb for interplanting with ornamental
grasses. The native variety of Camass is pale blue,
18” tall and called Camassia scilloides.
tractive ground cover until it dies back after early
Photo: istock.com/ Marbury
spring. Likes cool moist, but not wet, soil under
shrubs and perennials where it will be shaded
through the summer and not dry out.
Winter Aconite
58 •
Photo: istock.com/ LianeM
Netted Iris – Iris reticulata Violet-scented, very short, small (4-6”) purple
to light blue iris-type flower, usually with a yellow
Guinea-hen flower
stripe on one petal. The thin strap-like leaves grow
to 12” after the plants bloom in March and die off
Guinea-hen flower - Fritillaria meleagris
in late spring. Must be planted in well-drained soil
Nodding purple-pink or cream flowers with
in full sun or light shade so soil will dry out in
checkered pattern on 10-12” stems that bloom
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in late April to early May. Green lance-type leaves die back in late May.
Grows best in moist, rich soil, and will tolerate poorly drained soil. The
It takes more than luck
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flowers will naturalize in woodlands and grow among low groundcovers.
Drumstick onion – Allium sphaerocephalon
A nearly solid one-inch egg-shaped orb of many small reddish-purple
flowers on 15-30” stems that bloom in late May until July. The leaves are
14” long and grass-like. The blooms provide graceful swaying movement
Autumn Crocus
Photo: istock.com/fotodietrich
with ornamental grasses and among lilies and daylilies.
Nonie Brown
847-710-0827
[email protected]
Susan Ferry
847-404-5040
[email protected]
Fall Bulbs: Bloom in September through October
Waterlily Autumn Crocus – Colchicum Waterlily
Leaves of 5-14” long emerge in February and must be allowed to ripen
(die back) until June for blooms in fall. In late September, one to six double, large pinkish-purple blooms resembling a waterlily will bloom with
no foliage at a height of 6-8”. Colchicum grow well in clay or other soil in
full sun to part-shade, as long as they are well-drained.
Ivy Leafed or Hardy Cyclamen – Cyclamen hederifolium
Lightly scented pale-pink, maroon-accented, 1” flowers appear in late
autumn above clumps of heart-shaped foliage with silver-patterned green
leaves at 4-5” height. Cyclamen prefers shade in rich, well-drained soil
Patsy Thalheimer
847-656-6853
[email protected]
under shrubs and trees, even tolerating the base of large trees including
lindens and maples. Provide an annual deep leaf mulch over winter.
Choose a few of your favorite bulbs, plant them this fall, and enjoy
years of deer-resistent, easy-care bursts of color next spring for for years
to come!
Alison A. Hoffman is the owner of Every Green Plant. She may be reached at:
[email protected], or 224-688-8838.
Recommended books on bulbs include: “Bulb” by Anna Pavord,
and “Taylor’s Guides: Bulbs” by Barbara W. Ellis.
As long time As
Barrington
residents,
weresidents, we
long time
Barrington
enjoy the exceptional
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enjoy the exceptional lifestyle that the
Barrington area
offers. We
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a We share a
Barrington
area
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passion for our
community
and
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passion for our community and for the
people who live
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Allow
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Allow us to help
you take advantage
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today’s
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you take advantage of today’s market
opportunitiesopportunities
to find your perfect
to find home.
your perfect home.
Or learn more by taking the Hardy Bulbs course at The Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG). The Hardy Bulbs course is part of the
Ornamental Plant Material Certificate Program in which students
develop knowledge of more than 500 ornamentals well-suited
for Northeastern Illinois, focusing on identification, cultural requirements, and use in gardens and the broader landscape. Visit
Each Keller Williams office is independently owned and operated. Equal housing opport
Each Keller Williams office is independently owned and operated. Equal housing opport
www.chicagobotanic.org.
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