Tulipa tarda bulbs

Tulipa tarda, known in English as "tarda tulip" or "species tulip" and in French as tulipe tarda or tulipe botanique, are bulbous perennials native to Turkey and the surrounding area. Unlike the usual hybrid tulips, species tulips will self-sow and are more perennial in nature (hybrids may come back in future years but often decline). Tarda tulips are petite plants with showy 6-petalled star-shaped flowers in yellow with white tips.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day May 2009

Once again, it's Garden Blogger's Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. This is not the best picture of my new barren strawberry (Waldsteinia fragaroides), which I got at the North American Native Plant Society's plant sale last weekend.

This pansy (Viola x wittrockiana 'Delta Pure Rose') led me to break my promise to myself not to buy plants I could have grown from seed if I had been more organized. There are so many interesting new varieties of pansies these days; I especially like the pink ones.

I think this little viola is the grandchild of the 'Sorbet Coconut Duet' violas I had two years ago. (The first generation of volunteers, last year, looked nothing like the original.)

I love it when plants volunteer, at least when they are pretty like this yellow viola.

Here is one of the 'Angelique' tulips I got for almost free from Brecks (they had a $25 off sale, no minimum purchase). Unfortunately only about half of them bloomed; at least I didn't have to pay much for them.

Some of the bulbs the landlords' kids and I rescued from a neighbour who was replacing the previous owner's garden with sod are blooming. We had no idea what would come up from these bulbs, of course, so I'm happy that they are so far all very pretty, like this pale pink tulip,

and this striking bicoloured dark pink and white one.

My landlords' pretty pale yellow tulips are back again this spring.

I don't know where this pink tulip in the front yard came from; a gift from the squirrels, perhaps?

The pear tree (Pyrus sp.) has just started blooming. So far we have never got edible fruit from it, but it still works as an ornamental.

My grape hyacinths (Muscari sp.) are behind the rest of Toronto, for some reason, even though they were one of the earliest plants up in our garden. This is the only one in bloom; the rest have just tiny undeveloped green buds.

My landlord just got these pretty yellow flowers, which I believe are Dahlia?

My daffodils are on their way out (Narcissus 'Cheerfulness' from Vesey's). I'm very pleased with the vigor of these plants.

Finally, the bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is doing well. This was one of the first flowers I learned to recognize, for obvious reasons.

Thanks, Carol, for hosting Bloom Day!

Tulipa turkestanica: flowers

Tulipa turkestanica, known in English as "species tulips" and in French as tulipe botanique 'Turkestanica' is a flowering bulb native to Iran and Turkistan. It has 6 pointed petals, white with yellow at the base, and narrow wavy leaves.

This pretty clump is blooming in a talented neighbour's garden.

Tulips coming up all over!

Tulipa, known in English as "tulips" and in French as tulipes is a genus of flowering bulbs native to Eurasia and north Africa. The city of my birth, Ottawa, has an annual Tulip Festival in May, which I've never been to because they started doing it after I moved away. But I do have fond memories of the beautiful tulip beds which abound in Ottawa, thanks to Netherland's Princess Juliana, who donated 100,000 tulips to Ottawa in gratitude for the safe home Ottawa provided for the Dutch royal family during the second world war.

Today it seems all of a sudden the little bed in front of the house is full of tulip shoots! At least some of these should be the 'Angelique' tulips I put in last fall (less than $2 including tax, shipping, and handling thanks to a generous offer from Brecks: $25 off, no minimum order.) Here's a close look at an especially beautiful plant. I can't wait until the tulips start blooming!