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Late Winter/Early Spring Bulbs

Watching various British gardening shows, they love this time of the year, or next month they will as all the spring bulbs pop up to carpet their gardens. Unfortunately, many of them need that cold spell during winter to do their thing, something we lack. I know there are people who will dig up their tulip/daffodil bulbs and refrigerate them, but I am more the type that expects things to live in the garden where I put them. With the exception of a few potted plants and my Tropical bed, everything is left to fend for themselves all-year. This Spring I thought I would add a few Amaryllis bulbs to my Tropical bed and two are already sending up flowers. Ialso have my Sangria crinum, but Crinums are pretty much all-year attention-grabbeds with their foliage and the flowers are just icing on the cake. And, of course, there are Caladiums with their all-Summer Flaunting of Foliage. So with my normal penchant for rambling out of the way:

Do we Floridians have any options for that Spring-time 'WOW Factor' before the rest of the gardens wake up and take back the show?


Comments (11)

  • 11 years ago

    How about rain lilies? Soon as our rain starts they bloom. Don't forget early blooming day lilies either. :o)

  • 11 years ago

    My soil is mostly Sandhill, so it doesn't take long for things to dry up. Though the mulched beds and the years of adding organic matter helps a bit. How well do Rain Lilies handle the dry spells between some our rains?

  • 11 years ago

    They are native, so I would say give them a try.


  • 11 years ago

    For me in Central Florida, (Clermont--about 20 miles due west of Orlando) the there is one plant that is a wow and that is the Flame vine. I planted it about eight years ago and it grew up a Crepe Myrtle, and then it started growing into a group of Crepe Myrtles and then into my neighbor's yard. It is very orange. I got it to attract hummingbirds. It certainly looks like it would attract them, but I have never seen one visit a flower.

    It is still blooming now, but soon it will stop and become almost invisible for the rest of the year.


  • 11 years ago

    The rain lilies are thin green strappy leaves through out the rest of the year and then bloom often after a heavy rain. The day lilies usually only bloom once, though there are some repeat bloomers. Each has it's own bloom time, spring, summer or fall. There are also many more crinums.

    I have the Florida flame vine as well, and it starts bloom for me at the end of Nov and continues until about now. The heaviest blooms in Dec. I didn't mention this because you asked about bulbs.

  • 11 years ago

    Hi

    Several bulb types that I've been having good luck with are Lily of the nile Agapanthus several sizes and colors. Society garlic , has nodding purplish flowers , several gesneriads (not african violets but have never tried them

    Amazon lily looks like daffodils and flowers more than once a year ,Blood lily pretty but short lived flowering but has attractive foliage Cannas of course gazillions to choose from heliconias. Peruvian daffodils tropical iris

    i particularly like the tall types . bloom off and on throughout summer . Caldwell lily I have trouble getting them to go dormant but bet not a problem in 9 ??lol

    Many many south african bulbs ,gladiolus watsonias sparaxis some require very hot dry summers Many types of terrestrial orchids

    Already mentioned Crinum,Amaryillis , rain lilys. daylily . good luck gary

  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Not a lily, but I love the blue spiderwort (tradescantia) coming back into bloom in my yard. I do have milk & wine crinums, spider lily(Hymenocallis), & yellow & orange daylilies(edited to add not blooming this time of year) - the yellow 1 dies back during winter months & is now re-emerging.

    2 other flowers that are spring bloomers around here are the blue toadflax shown in Michael's other recent post & a pink oxalis - which is a bulb, I believe - they are blooming in abundance in people's lawns right now here, forming carpets of pink & airy blue clouds.

    I've also noticed the white & blue walking iris is blooming here.

    Edited to add that I have also pink, white & yellow zephyr (rain) lilies & also crocosmia - none blooming right now, tho.

  • 11 years ago

    Thanks for all the suggestions thus far, quite a few that I like the look of and might add. I think, if it will survive, Rain Lilies in my shrub bed would be great, especially if I can find an early-spring blooming variety. The Flame vine is out for me though, reading up on it, it sounds like it could be monster to deal with once it gets nice and mature. I already have Passionvines that I fight (willingly) and don't need another. What about Gloriosa Lily? Sites say it is a summer bloomer, but I often immediately assume that they mean "Summer for the northern states".

  • 11 years ago

    My gloriosa lilies don't bloom until summer, if fact they go down for the winter and I am zone 10a.

  • 11 years ago
    last modified: 11 years ago

    Adding that my blue-eyed grass is blooming like crazy right now - in the iris family, I believe...?

    Not mine - just for illustration:

  • 11 years ago

    Oh, my blue eyed grass is blooming too. That is another good one I didn't even think about. Just love it!! :o)

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