Still planting? I'm still buying. Planting starts when we have consistently cool weather. My amaryllis for forcing are in pots, all with leaves either starting to emerge, or in active growth.

The fridge is full of bulbs, with planting dates on the bags. I think the first ones start next weekend.

Yet to come are Fruit Cup jonquillas -- I try to buy at least one new cultivar yearly, 25 purple hyacinths I haven't tried before, and 10 lily bulbs to look forward to when the spring bulbs finish.

Last night I reviewed photos of last spring's bulbs. I saw several combinations I wish I'd bought -- wait, the buying season isn't done!

Nell

Here is a link that might be useful: Hyacinths and Companions

Nell, I've already got my eye on daffodil & crocus bulbs for next fall! ;-) I saw a fabulous bargain for a bushel of daffs (400 bulbs!!) @ TouchofNature.com.

I'm playing beat-the-weather here, and envy those who have more time to plant.

Enjoy planting!!!

I too am in Massachusetts. The weather has been great for planting, (in S.E MA anyway). Weather is a little too good, the stores don't need to mark down their stock. Last year I used a roto tiller to prepare the soil where I wanted to plant. It made all the difference in the world. The tiller kicked up all the rocks and cut through many of the roots. Since the initial prep I have been amending the soil with compost, manure, and mulch. In one season I totally transformed the soil. A shovel into the garden soil now is like a knife through butter.

That Touch of Nature site has links to some slide shows of the Keukenhof gardens. So many grand ideas. It would be much easier if we could all plant thousands as they do, but you can get ideas from what they do on a large scale, to try on a small scale. There's one photo of I think it was pink tulips edged with pink hyacinths. That would work with purples, or daffodils and yellow hyacinths.

The trick is to get two that will bloom at the same time, which in my garden is hit or miss. I've had Topolino daffodils bloom precisely with City of Haarlem hyacinths one year, and at different times the next. My pink hyacinths never seem to bloom with the blue, so I try to plan for two different minor shows in those spots.

Nell

I really enjoyed the slide shows of Keukenhof gardens ~ what a sight to behold!

I am very pleased to report that I finally finished planting my bulbs tonight and am truly looking to forward to spring. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they all come up.

We're expecting rain tomorrow and the following day, so I can leave the watering to mother nature. And, hopefully, it will soften the soil for my peonies so I may plant them next week (my package is scheduled to arrive on Monday).

I hope my bulbs bloom according to the vendors' timeframe, as I ordered them accordingly.

Enjoy planting and very best wishes for the holiday weekend!

Ordinarily, I would still be out planting bulbs, but I was too ill this summer to even think about ordering them. So I only had a handful to plant this year, and they were all planted over a month ago.

ljrmiller ~ so sorry to hear you will too ill to order/plant more bulbs and hope you have mended or are mending progressively.

quicksilver ~ sounds like you have some truly primo soil ~ I'm envious! ;-)

I am just finished planting my lily bulbs today and then i have the 400 tulips. I am a major procrastinator so usually wait till around Christmas. The soil is not frozen yet, but it sure is cold at that time of year.

Our weather today is lovely and sunny with crystal clear blue skies. The air is delightfully fresh after the extensive onslaught of rain we received throughout yesterday. It is nearly perfect planting weather with the exception of digging heavy, soggy soil.

I'm tempted to order some of the special sale bulbs @ TouchofNature.com. I've been admiring their small cup tulip mix, hyacinths, and a couple of their species tulips ~ and their prices are difficult to pass up. I figure since I'm still digging peony beds anyways ~ why not? I've still got to amend our soil with a fabulous organic compost I'm having delivered (hopefully tomorrow!), and for me the most challenging part is the prep work.

Happy planting!

Brent and Becky's is having a 50% off sale. I just purchased 31 different varieties of bulbs. I can't plant in spring very well, it gets hot so quickly, but late fall like this is perfect for bulbs and other plantings in my area.

I just planted the last of my tulips & daffs yesterday. & I got 1 peony from u.p.s today. it's already planted. but, I still have more plants coming from dutchbulbs.com. thanks for the tip on other company's to check out. I still have some room left to plant in. my goal is to get rid of the grass, (I don't like mowing), so, I have spring bulbs, & summer perennials planted everywhere. I can't wait till spring! to see all my new flowers in bloom. it's going to be beautiful. I've even found green & white tulips to plant. I've planted just about every color I can find. I just wish we didn't have to wait thru snow & ice first. but, I guess that's the price to live in michigan.

tehegemon, thanks for the good wishes. I am slowly recovering. It took a while for the docs to find out what was wrong and then for me and the docs to get things fixed. On the very plus side, I saved LOTS of money by NOT buying thousands of bulbs. It's not like I have a huge amount of room: I have one small city lot, and I've already shoehorned in a good 5000 bulbs over the last several years plus perennials and shrubs.

Unfortunately, now that B&B is at 50% off, I may have to buy and hope the ground thaws again (it usually does) in December. I need my head examined, but that's not a medical condition. :-)

Lisa

We got lucky in Michigan the past few days, 63 11/28 and broke the record with 67 today. Finished the outdoor bulbs and perennials today and will work on indoor amaryllis tomorrow. Tried something different this year, planting 20 lilies in 1 gallon pots and did combos of tulips, daffs, hyacinth, crocus and muscari in 17" foam planters. Placed them against the north side of the house under an overhang and will cover them with straw until spring. I'm hoping they'll survive. I want to place the planters on my porch in spring.

Lisa, so glad to hear you're on the mend and that your docs identified the source of your health concerns!!! WOW, now THAT's impressive ~ 5K bulbs, not to mention your perennials & shrubs?!?! You inspire me to do more ~ next year (that is), as I'm struggling to plant peonies.

Nell ~ since you're still buying, have you checked out the 50% off sale @ BrentandBeckysBulbs.com? (thanks xanadu for posting this!!)

quicksilver, since you've got a super garden gadget, will you take advantage of the deeper discounted end-of-season sales and plant more bulbs?

irish rose grower ~ have you made a dent in planting your 400 tulips, or still procrastinating?

xanadu, I have to pass on the B&B sale this time, although I'll look forward to it next year ~ thanks again for posting it!! I'm battling a cold/flu combo and still have to plant peonies before this weekend, or perhaps earlier - meaning Friday! We're expecting nice weather today, rain Friday, cold weather this weekend, and then really cold weather next week. Whatever I don't get into the ground will simply have to wait until spring unless we get an earlier thaw - which sometimes happens around here.

aggiegrad, like you ~ we've eliminated much of our (crab)grass and will give Nichols Northern Ecology Lawn Mix a shot. We planted perennial beds, shrubs, bulbs, and now peonies, which eliminated most of our "lawn" (if one could even call it that!). I'm looking forward to spring too!! :-)

karilynn ~ congrats on finishing your outdoor bulbs & perennials!! I never tried amaryllis and can't say I will...we've got all-too-curious pets, although I have been thinking about planting a cacti dish. Your pots & planters sound absolutely divine!!

Ooohhh ~ can't wait unti spring to see how our plantings look!!!

Thanks everyone for participating in this thread ~ Lisa, I'm sending you lots of positive vibes for a quicker mend ~ especially if you can't resist the B&B sale and simply MUST plant some bulbs!

Here is a link that might be useful: 50%-off sale @ Brent & Beckys Bulbs

Still planting?

Yes, I guess I will be until the ground freezes, or whenever it thaws a bit.

Just checked out B&B's sale, and now have about 250 bulbs coming this way.

What was I thinking? Maybe I wasn't...huh?

Sue

Yes, in December I still have bulbs to plant. It's supposed to get in the mid 50s today, so I hope to get many in the ground. I'd orderd a number of old fashioned fragrant varieties from Old House Garden and can't wait for them to bloom next spring.

Becky

Our ground will most likely be frozen by the end of the week as our low temps have finally fallen below freezing.

Sue ~ what were you thinking? I imagine a lot of gorgeous blooms come spring!! Enjoy planting your B&B bulbs!

Ooohhh Becky ~ fragrant varieties ~ very nice! I'm off to familiarize myself with the Old House Garden (thanks for mentioning it, as it's new to me).

I, too, am still buying. B&B's sale was too much of a temptation.

I have yet to plant a bulb. We just had our first freeze 2 nights ago, and it is cold and windy, and our soil will cool off pretty soon. I plan to plant most of what I have during Christmas week. DH will be off work then too, and I am sure he will help me.

Maybe not. LOL

Janie, who is so looking forward to seeing my bulbs planted last year return. I hope they do, I hope they do!

Janie ~ two people planting are surely better than one! I wish my DH could help although he's on the other side of the planet enjoying hot, humid tropical weather in the 90s (for work with little available time for pleasure). Well, someone's got to pay for our bulbs and gardening tools, lol. ;-) My DH will be home during xmas week as well...if our weather warms up then, he'll help me get more peonies planted. :-)

These are the bulbs I got planted today:
Roman hyacinths
Byzantine glads

and daffodils:
Early Louisiana Jonquil
Lent Lily, Early Yellow (Wordsworth's daffodils)
Campernelle
Texas Star
N. poeticus Orantus
Sweetness
Early Pearl
Golden Scepter
Hoop Petticoats
The Tenby Daffodil
Trevithian
Dreamlight
Rosy Cloud
Pink Charm
Romance

About 200 in all. I still have about 100 more in various pink varieties to get in the ground this week.

Becky

tehegemon, I love Old House Garden! All the bulbs I planted today came from them except the pink daffodils. Having fragrant varieties lining the walkway where people come to the front door is wonderful. I also put them under our bedroom window and all around the front porch. Daffodils are my favourite flowers.

{{gwi:30576}}

Becky

Becky ~ WOW ~ you TOTALLY ROCK!!! :-)

I'm new to all-things-gardening ~ bulbs included! I acquired our bulbs from ColorBlends.com & VanEngelen.com (their end-of season sale).

Many thanks again for sharing those wicked cool bulbs at Old House Garden!! I saw a few things (OK, actually more than a mere few, lol!) I want to add to our garden. I dig (pun intended) the fact that us bulb-addicted folks may purchase now at current pricing for 2007 delivery. Of course, I prefer end-of-season sale prices although the trade-off is limited selection.

My absolute favorite flower is the Rubrum Lily and they've got it!!! Van Engelen carries it as well (was sold out though so I didn't get any during their sale), so between Old House Garden and VE ~ I know I can get it ~ WOOHOO!!!

I hope you enjoy pleasant planting weather as you get your pink varieties into the ground!

Thanks for your good wishes. I haven't had a chance to get back out to the farm to plant, but Thursday is looking good. I need to get these pink ones planted so I'll be ready for all the half price ones on the way from B&B's sale!

I love bulbs and daffodils are my favourite. Originially I dug up tons of them from my great-grandmother's house. No one has lived there or tended to the flowers in many years. After I "thinned" them, they all started blooming much more profusely again.

The rubrum lily is gorgeous. My Mom has one of those I always admire. Best of luck with your bulbs. I know you won't regret getting started with them!

Becky

just when I thought I was finally done planting, here comes the u.p.s. man with another bulb package for me. 71 more bulbs to plant. plus, I went to home depot on saturday & found 6 shrubs on clearance at 75% off. who could resist that? so, yesterday & tonight it was back to the yard for more digging. then when I came in & checked my e~mails, what do I find but, an e~mail from vanbourgondien's for an end~of~season clearance sale for 60% off! who could pass that up? if anyone else is interested, I've added a link. they even have some peonies left. go ahead & check it out, if you dare! sale ends dec. 18th, so, you have time to think about it. for those of you still digging, good luck.

Here is a link that might be useful: van bourgondien

I accidentally dug up a bulb while digging a hole to plant a peony...I replanted that bulb and that's it for me for this year! ;-)

The tree peonies @ dutchbulbs.com are quite striking! aggiegrad, have you purchased from them before? If so, what was your experience? I checked Dave's Garden Watchdog and noted this company has a substantial less-than-stellar rating. If not for this rating, I think I would have purchased some of their tree peonies. It's just as well as I still have 17 left to plant, and hope to get 7 into the ground this week - weather and health permitting.

Enjoy the last minute bargains & planting! :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: Van Bourgondien Garden Watchdog rating

After I finished planting the daffodil bulbs from B&B's on Sunday, I still have about 36' of fence with no bulbs along it. I am off this week to see if there are any left at Lowes, Home Depot, etc., so I can get them in the ground this weekend.

Becky

tehegemon,
I have ordered a Renkaku tree peony from Van Bourgondien's summer sale. It arrived dead as a door nail (as well as a couple of other plants I ordered from them). They scheduled a replacement on next spring. Will see... So far that was my worst experience with the mail order companies ever.
I am planning to order tree peonies from The Lily Pad. Their reputation is much better, so I hope I will not be dissappointed.
The Lily Pad Peony page

And I am still planting bulbs...

Alina.

I prefer Klehm's Songsparrow Farm (songsparrow.com) for my tree peonies, but ouch! VERY expensive! Fortunately (?) I'm out of room for more tree peonies. I haven't got a lot of room left for anything.

Lisa

Klehm's Songsparrow Farm is a wish book of cool plants. Someday I hope my wishes come true but right now I look at the prices and go ouch!

I was done planting my bulbs..... I potted them up in the garage to overwinter them since the ground was freezing... well now the ground has thawed and it should stay that way for another week or two. I took all my pots out and dug them in (pot and all) and covered the ground with about a foot of hay that I had. I think it should work, the hay should keep them warm a little longer so they can root well and come springtime I can move them elsewhere easily since they will still be potted up. I might do this next year too!
I'll definately leave a spot in the yard open for clearance sale buys next year. If there's a thick mulch on top I should be able to plant well into December even if the weather turns cold fast and that way I'll avoid the pots in the garage syndrome.
Kato

Becky ~ how did you make out at your local stores? Did you get any great end-of-season deals?

Alina ~ I hope VB makes it right! Sorry to hear about your back luck with the dead Renkaku. :-( Thanks for sharing the link to The Lily Pad peony page!!

Lisa ~ yeah, I've visited Songsparrow Farm ~ p r i c e y ! ! ! ! ! But, some really nice plants!!

Kato ~ sounds like you did a superb job overwintering your bulbs, and great idea about reserving planting space for those last minute killer bargains. :-)

I've resisted the temptation to buy more bulbs...it was HARD, but I did it! ;-)

I have about 90 to go yet and then another order from Buggycrazy coming in yet for 100 bulbs.

Woohoo!

1 x ANOT DAFFODIL, 12 Bulbs $6.00
1 x Iris tenax WILD OREGON IRIS, 3 FANS $3.00
1 x TRIPARTITE, 12 bulbs $6.00
1 x SPRING PRIDE, 6 BULBS $5.00
1 x SPELLBINDER, 3 BULBS $3.00
1 x Sir Winston Churchill 12 BULBS $5.00
1 x RAINBOW 6 BULBS $5.00
1 x PASSIONALE, 12 bulbs $10.00
1 x PHEASANT'S EYE, 12 BULBS $5.00
1 x Mrs R O Backhouse 3 BULBS $2.00
1 x MISTY GLEN 3 BULBS $2.00
1 x MINT JULEP, 3 BULBS $4.00
1 x MARTINETTE, 6 BULBS FOR FORCING $5.00
1 x HOLLAND SENSATION $1.00
1 x BARRII CONSPICUUS, 6 BULBS $3.00

Sub-Total: $65.00
Region Based Rates (Shipping to Indiana, United States ): $13.00
Total: $78.00

Sue...the enabler

Here is a link that might be useful: Buggycrazy Daffs-page 1 or 4

Only 100 muscari at the end of the driveway to go. That is if I don't see something I can't resist. Weather/soil has been cooperating but procrastinator that I am I'm starting to push it.

I'm planting a few dozen at a time. I planted 40 'Bing Crosby' tulips today and overseeded with Shirley poppies. Yesterday I planted mixed daffodils along the edge of the 'Carlton' bed and more 'Pink Charm' near a Magnolia.

There are several dozen labeled for January 15 planting still chillin' in the fridge, including 40 purple tulips I promised not to buy and some purple hyacinths to accompany them. It didn't seem as if I was buying very many, but there are too many when I start digging holes.

Nell

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:30575}}

It's funny how a few little bulb orders build up and become this ton of bulbs that needs to be planted!
I'm in envy of your bulb orders Sue.... although I'm finally ok, and feel like I bought enough, every time I see how many bulbs you've added it embarrasses me!

I used to say I'm starting to build up a daff collection but then when I see what you're adding..... WOW!....... maybe I do need to buy a few more! LOL(I'm done!)

now what about next year? I'm thinking more daffs, some autumn crocus a few colchicums...... and as always there's got to be a few "experimental" bulbs. Maybe I'll try camassia or something. hmmmmmmm

YES! After a month of monsoons with 19 inches of rain, a freeze up with snow, and a major windstorm, today was pleasant enough that my husband could rototill the weed patch outside of my cutting garden so I now have an extra 240 square feet to plant the daffodils I ordered this year. I planted a thousand last year because I run a flower stand, but disvered that too many of them were mid bloomers and I really needed more late ones. Also, for some reason Ice Follies seems to run out on me in just a couple of years. Today I planted 100 new Ice follies, 50 Gazelle, and 100 Geranium. Tomorrow I hope to find the time to get the last 300 or so in. That would be Las Vegas, Actaea, Pipit and Quail. Then I have a crate of odds and ends of tulips and an exxtra 50 Stargazer lilies that accidently got ordered twice! Going to edge the front of the bed with mixed small crocus, so hope to be done before 2007 starts. How many others of us would rather plant bulbs then make Christmas cookies, LOL. My kids are all adults so if they want cookies they know where the kitchen is! Only I can or will plant the bulbs! And then there are the lovely seed catalogs....

HELP!! The week before Christmas I finally had some time where I was going to plant my tulip bulbs... well we got 20+ inches of snow here in Colorado.. and it isn't melting all too soon, in fact we are getting more snow even as I type.. so what can I do with my bulbs? Can I or should I freeze them in the freezer? Plant them this spring? Are they a lost cause...??? Any thoughts, experiences, or suggestions would be great.. thanks, Kristi

Kristi, can you pot them? I have 100+ tulip bulbs potted in big containers and I expect a nice show next spring.
Other way to save them would be waiting for the warm spell and planting them in the garden. Until then you should keep them in the fridge, not freezer, separately from fruit and vegetables.

I'm still planting here in Kansas. The last few years, I've found bargains real late in the season, and so ended up planting waaaaay into Jan. and Feb. Everything grew, but I still had daffodils blooming in the middle of June! The blooms didn't last nearly as long, and luckily we didn't have tremendous heat by then, but I still think it's worth it to go ahead and plant them, no matter how late. Our ground wasn't frozen when I planted. We didn't have 2 feet of snow to dig through, either! You have my sympathy out there in Colorado.
Cindi

Well, I'm doing the happy dance 'cause the weather has sure held out for us in downstate New York and I finally planted my last bulbs yesterday - 100 + muscari (enough for a little river)& a dozen daffs I almost forgot about. I can't believe my good fortune, the ground was still wonderful to work and they are calling for rain tomorrow so mother nature sure is my gardening buddy this season.

Best wishes to you all for a Happy, Healthy & colorful New Year.

Beth

No luck with finding any bulbs late locally. I still have about 50 pink daffodils and some Naked Ladies to get planted. Had wanted to do that this weekend, but the storm dumped many inches of rain on us. Hopefully I can get back out to the farm this week while it is sunny and in the 50s/60s to get them in the ground.

It's hard to believe, but I was out in my zone 4 garden today, without a jacket, planting tulips, anemone blanda, and globemaster alliums. It was 58F and the ground is not frozen. I got some good deals on end of season bulbs from our local Ace Hardware. I marked the calendar because I know I won't believe it next year!

Well, I can't believe it was in the low 60s today...darn ~ I wish I had bought more bulbs so I could take advantage of our freakish unseasonably warm weather. Hard to fathom how warm it's been here while other parts of the country are getting blasted with tons of snow. Glad to hear some of you finally got your bulbs into the ground!

Happy belated New Year!!!

Today finished up the daffodils -- 96 'Fruit Cup' went in. They had 8 weeks of chill. We'll see.

Old bulbs are blooming here and there. New bulbs have buds here and there. Some are still sleeping.

Oh, and there are some lilies still in the chill. Lilies tend to want to come up and get the buds killed when I put them out too soon.

I was able to resist the callas, dahlias, tuberoses and other summer pretties at Home Depot yesterday.

Nell

I have finished with the daffs. I only have a few anemones, freesia and alliums to put in now. I would have been finished, but the weather here has been COLD and WET! I think it has rained every day for the last 2 or 3 weeks!

Also have some lilies. they will be o.k. to wait a couple of weeks.

Janie

Congrats Nell on finishing up your daffs!

Janie ~ I caught a quick glimpse of the freezing wet weather in TX on the news ~ YIKES!!

Our cold winter weather finally returned although we have yet to see any snow.

Despite our cold weather, our bulbs continue breaking ground...nothing has budded or bloomed, so I still expect a nice spring show.