Category Archives: Bulbs for the Garden

Tulips – Design & Plant – a new eBook

Posted on December 8, 2016 by Michael

I have just released a new eBook on tulips. Without tulips many perennial meadow and naturalistic planting schemes would be very dull at the beginning of spring. I mix them into my borders, dropping them into any spaces I find … Continue reading →

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Bulbs get eaten by mice and voles

Posted on August 15, 2016 by Michael

As you can see bulbs, and in particular tulips, are amongst my favourite flowers. However, six years ago I hit a big problem; mice and voles started eating the bulbs – every single one of them. In that year I … Continue reading →

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Red Tulips when needed

Posted on April 26, 2016 by Michael

Naturalistic planting and especially the prairie planting variant can look very flat and green in spring. Often these schemes are filled with perennials that flower in summer and look wonderful with ornamental grasses, but in spring they are green. Red … Continue reading →

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Tulips from Amsterdam

Posted on May 15, 2015 by Michael

Plants in their season can bring spectacle to the garden when used boldly. I search for such players in my gardens and use them repeatedly, at numerous intervals throughout the planting  – I call them the theme plants in my perennial meadows. … Continue reading →

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The Vernal Garden

Posted on April 5, 2015 by Michael

Seasonal Highlights in the Perennial Meadow Garden For more than three weeks the weather has been cold, wet and very windy here in the Netherlands, but now it is Easter and it feels like the gardening season has begun. The … Continue reading →

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Tulips Offer Hope

Posted on January 19, 2013 by Michael

National Tulip Day 2013 It was only a week ago that I was writing about our mild winter in Holland and advising you not to miss the boat and get on with cutting back cold season grasses. Well since then … Continue reading →

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Keukenhof 2012 discovers tulip – bulb mixtures

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Michael

There are two good reasons to mix together different varieties of tulips at planting time. Firstly, by selecting early, mid-season and late flowering varieties you can create a splash of colour lasting maybe six or more weeks long, rather than … Continue reading →

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Using Tulips in the Garden

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Michael

Below is an extract from a post I made last year around this time about blue tulips. The new video shows how I like to use these tulips in the garden. I use tulips to flood my perennial meadow schemes … Continue reading →

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Amsterdam Tulip Museum

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Michael

The spring of 2012 is the time that many gardeners are planning a visit to Holland. Not only is the Keukenhof open and likely to be reaching its peak within the next couple of weeks. There is a new national … Continue reading →

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Tulips in Pots or in Gardens

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Michael

The tulip season is coming to a premature end in the Netherlands with temperatures hitting 28 degrees (82F) this weekend. Tulipa sprengeri is coming into flower weeks earlier than normal, but every cloud has a silver lining as this early … Continue reading →

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