LADYBUG SAYS...PLANTINGS BEGIN FOR SPRING GARDENS

When planting a spring garden, many gardeners do not think past crocus, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips. Since the first two have been previously discussed, now some of the others will be featured.

For best results from any bulbs, it is most important to purchase top quality bulbs. They must be firm to the touch and the larger of their variety the better.

October is the best month for planting tulips, hyacinths, and members of the minor bulb families but crocus and daffodils should be in the ground by now because they need to develop a strong root system before the soil becomes cold.

Sometimes our fall is mild and bulbs may be planted much later than this month, in fact, any time until the ground freezes. Most spring flowering bulbs like a cool temperature for good bulb development.

Select a background that will show the bulbs to the best advantage, near a building, fence or evergreens, such as yews with their dark green foliage. On slopes or in rock gardens, bulbs are effectively set off. Remember, too, that bulbs can force their way through ground covers such as pachysandra and vinca.

Save space in choice corners close to the main entrance to your house for the earliest minor bulbs like snow crocus, snowdrops, glory of the snow, and small specie tulips such as Red Riding Hood.

Tulips are a bit more fussy about the depth of planting than hyacinths or daffodils. Darwin, cottage, breeder and other May flowering tulips, such as Rembrant, do well when planted 9 to 10 inches deep. Such deep planting restrains to some degree the tendency for the bulbs to split into several smaller ones that produce only foliage or small leaves with inferior blooms, or no blooms at all.

Deep planting of tulips makes it possible to plant summer annuals over them without lifting the bulbs and without harming them. It has been our experience that tulips do not like excess water after blooming so be careful about watering the flowering annuals too deeply.

There are several classes of tulips, beginning with the single and double early varieties, flowering from the middle to late April, the cottage and lily-flowered for early May, and the Darwins and parrots for mid to late May, or June.

Everyone who has visited Holland in the spring comes back in awe of the beauty of the fields of tulips, and feels that Mother Nature has truly blessed the Hollanders. All of our bulbs come from there and are selected by buyers from all over the world for marketing from the fields of Holland.

Hyacinths are another favorite of gardeners because of their colors and fragrance. One might select City of Harlem with creamy spikes, Delft Blue, a lovely light blue or Pink Pearl with appealing deep pink flowers. For contrast try rich, dark King of the Blues, rosy red La Victoire and for a snowy white, L'Innocence.

Plant generous beds or clumps of hyacinths to have some for extra cutting. A spike or two of hyacinths in a spring bouquet brings their beauty and fragrance into your home.

The flowering spikes of hyacinths range from 8 to 12 inches in height, so they are normally best placed near the front of a planting of taller tulips or daffodils.

Double flowered hyacinths are relatively new, and produce slightly shorter spikes. The red forms, which might better be described as deep pink, are particularly outstanding.

If you do not have a place outside for hyacinths, you might consider forcing them indoors. They force the same as tulips and daffys.

The magic spell of the hyacinths goes back to ancient times. Parent of the present hyacinth grew wild in a number of areas of the Eastern Mediterranean and was not brought into Holland until the 1500's. Not long after, it became part of the bulb craze of the seventeenth century along with the tulip.

As soon as the snow has melted (and sometimes before) snowdrops (Galanthus) peep their heads through the ground in the spring. Their nodding heads are white, with the ends and sometimes the bases of inner petals marked with green.

Chionodoxa (glory of the snow) are so called because they peep into bloom sometimes before the snow has completely disappeared. Although these little ones are only about 4 inches tall, they really stand out.

Grape hyacinths (Muscari) are among the easiest and most rewarding of the minor bulbs. They have developed foliage now and it will remain until the purple spike comes up in the spring. Their seeds are scattered by the wind and they may come up any place.

Scilla, or wood hyacinths come in purple, pink and white and bloom later than some of the other minor bulbs and are about 10 to 12 inches tall.

Plant LOTS of spring flowering bulbs now.