KATHRYN CATES MOORE/Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Saturday, October 1, 2005 7:00 pm
As she sits in her front yard cottage garden, Vikki O’Hara’s thoughts already have wandered from the waning blooms of her perennials and moved on to next spring.
More specifically, next spring’s bulbs. Where to plant the new varieties? What colors will look best with what’s already planted?
On her lap, along with her dachshund, Gus, are catalogs of heirloom bulbs. The bulbs she has already ordered are stowed away in a cool place, just waiting to be tucked into the soil when things cool down a bit.
But it’s always fun to think about ordering a few more.
O’Hara loves all kinds of gardening, but her passion is historic and heirloom bulbs. Tulips, daffodils, hyacinths. “I adore them,” she said.
She knows they are not as glamorous as the newly developed varieties — not as bright in color and somewhat smaller in size.
But they have their own strengths, she said.
“They are survivors,” said O’Hara. The bulbs are already proven winners, and that is why they are still around, according to O’Hara and others who love the oldies but goodies.
She is also adamant about fragrance. Fragrance was often left behind as new varieties — especially in roses — were hybridized into bigger and brighter versions of themselves.
“A garden is for the senses,” she said.
And then there is the sentimental side of heirloom planting. She likes the idea that a certain plant may have been in her mother’s garden in upstate New York or her grandmother’s garden.
She’s not alone. Scott Kunst of Old House Gardens in Michigan, a catalog of heirloom bulbs, is one of many across the country who promotes the stability of the older varieties.
Daffodils, tulips and all kinds of bulbs get treated with new respect in his catalog, which details the dates of the bulbs and, in many cases, who developed it.
The catalog is one of O’Hara’s guides.
O’Hara plants hundreds of bulbs each fall. Almost all were developed pre-1950 and typically not past 1920. Garden markers name and date each variety.
Her garden’s only three years old but she’s hoping to add more than 200 tulip bulbs, some hyacinths, daffodils and hundreds of tiny anemones.
Planting bulbs is simple, she said, but most people put their bulbs in the ground too soon.
The dormant bulbs prefer the cool temperatures, and O’Hara believes later is better. Her rule of thumb, following advice from bulb experts, is to plant when the soil temperature at 6 inches deep is about 60 degrees. In Nebraska, that’s often after the first frost.
Although bulbs have been appearing in bins since early September, the recent hot spell was not a good time to plant. The heat encourages the bulbs to sprout prematurely.
O’Hara has a tried and true method for planting. First, she mixes up her “recipe” — 1 part Myke Growth Supplement (specifically for bulbs), 2 parts coarse sand (the kind you buy in the winter to get traction on icy patches) and 1 part bone meal. O’Hara mixes them together and drops two or three tablespoons of it in every hole.
Although bulbs are usually pretty happy planted anywhere they get some sun, O’Hara finds that good drainage is better, especially with Lincoln’s heavy clay soil. “They don’t like and can’t tolerate wet feet,” she said of the bulbs.
Raised beds are one solution to that problem. You can amend the soil and use your own mix of compost and top soil and whatever else seems to work best.
O’Hara has some raised beds in her back yard awaiting some very special tulips. The “broken” tulips, with flames and feathers of contrasting colors, are patterned when a benign virus spread by aphids causes the colors to break. Because of that, the tulips need to be confined and planted away from other tulips.
They are more expensive and take special care, O’Hara said. “I’ll dig them up after they bloom,” she said.
There’s a place for all kinds of bulbs in O’Hara’s garden — heirloom and new cultivars, expensive and bargains alike.
Where the drainage is poor, she plants bulbs that she treats like annuals. “They are much less expensive and you get a lot of wow for your money,” she said.
New cultivars will make it in her garden if they have all the good qualities she likes.
Two very early bloomers — crocus and hyacinths — are also favorites. “I come out everyday in February to see if my crocuses are peeking up,” she said.
Her heirloom hyacinths are very difficult to find and she likes them because they are so fragrant and colorful. “There is nothing for me which smells more like spring, like Easter and like my mother’s huge perennial garden in upstate New York than hyacinths,” she said.
Some of the smaller plants, like her hyacinths, are placed near perennials. The perennials take off after the bulbs have bloomed and often cover up the scraggly foliage the bulbs leave behind.
But the leftover foliage is like an external vitamin sending energy down below the soil.
Don’t cut it off. Don’t braid it. Don’t wrap it in cute bows.
“That is totally unnatural,” she says. Instead, she suggests interplanting with perennials and plucking the leaves when they turn yellow.
But those are spring issues. And O’Hara is focused on fall planting right now.
She has a refrigerator full of bulbs and is waiting for the soil to cool.
Although some experts believe storing bulbs in the refrigerator dries them out, O’Hara keeps them in paper bags, then packs them inside sealed cardboard boxes. She also puts a tray of water in the refrigerator.
A cool, dry and dark place in her house is hard to find, she said. This works better for her.
So, patiently, she waits. “I’ve been known to be planting bulbs at Thanksgiving,” she said. “As long as I can work the soil.”
Reach Kathryn Cates Moore at 473-7214 or kmoore@journalstar.com.
Caring for bulbs before, during and after planting
Spring bulb planting should be delayed until after Sept. 20 each year, when soil temperatures begin to cool — maybe even later, depending on the weather. Earlier planting can lead to vegetative top growth, instead of the critical rooting.
Selecting bulbs in late August and early September means you have to hold the bulbs in what is likely less than ideal conditions. This is another strike against peak performance.
Without the correct conditions, the spring display can be disappointing, said Luann Finke of Finke Gardens and Nursery.
Here are some bulb basics to help make better blooms next spring:
* Selecting Bulbs: Bulbs should be planted in waves or masses so they look natural. Be sure to buy enough bulbs for a good display in your garden.
* What Kind to Plant: Daffodils tolerate our high soil temperatures better than other bulbs. Minor bulbs such as grape hyacinth, crocus and snowdrops flourish here; tulips prefer it cooler and are sometimes shorter-lived. However, if planted deep enough (6-8 inches), many tulip varieties will last for years.
* Storage Before Planting: Store your bulb selections in paper bags in a cool room before planting. Do not store them in a refrigerator because it dries out the bulb.
* When to Plant: Plant bulbs through October when the soil has cooled down. Planting when soil is too warm depletes their stored energy.
* Where to Plant: Bulbs do best in well-drained soil in full sun, though most will grow in any location except for heavy shade. Loosen and amend the soil with organic matter before planting. Planting bulbs among low-water-requirement perennial plants such as grasses and daylilies will hide yellowing foliage after blooming. Do not plant bulbs in annual flowerbeds.
* How Deep to Plant: Typically three times the height of the bulb, with the base of the bulb resting at this depth. Tulips should be planted deeper, at 6 to 8 inches.
* Mulch: Spread organic mulch such as wood chips or clippings to a depth of 2 inches over the entire planting bed to cool the soil, retain moisture and discourage weeds.
* Care After Flowering: Remove faded flowers to prevent seed formation, which takes energy away from the bulb and may reduce flowering the next year. After the leaves have turned yellow, cut and remove the foliage to help prevent diseases from affecting next year's bloom.
* Fertilizer: A low nitrogen, high phosphorus fertilizer such as Blooming & Rooting may be watered in at planting time to encourage rooting. In spring, slow-release fertilizer may be broadcast on top of the soil to support foliage growth and recharge the stored energy for the next season.
For information on planting depth, spacing and flowering height for specific spring flowering bulbs in Nebraska, go to the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension IANR publication “Spring Flowering Bulbs” at http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/horticulture/g428.htm.