Bulb planting payoff

Those spring-blooming bulbs I planted late last fall are starting to become something to look at.

When I planted these I was concerned that it was too late, that critters would eat the bulbs or the blooms, and that even though I got all of these bulbs on clearance it would be a waste of money. I needn't have worried.

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There are a few crocus still around, but first-year crocus are a bit ho-hum -- those solitary blooms just don't make the impression that a mature planting of dozens of blooms does -- and I posted about those before.

The stars right now are the daffodils.

I'm not the biggest fan of daffs -- for some reason they never really get me excited. I planted these because I knew deer wouldn't touch them, so I hoped they would help protect the tulips. Even if they didn't, at least I'd have the daffodil blooms each spring.

I have to admit that I'm liking them more than I thought I would. They add a nice splash of color, especially when viewed from the street as you approach the house:

Although most of them are plain yellow, there are a few different types:

Some of these are too top-heavy, and even a little bit of rain is enough to bend them over:

I'm hoping this is just a "juvenile" thing and they'll be stronger and stay upright next year.

Some of the tulips are getting ready to bloom, which is quite exciting:

The grape hyacinth are blooming too, although they're smaller than I thought they'd be. They're lost in the sea of daffodils, but at least we have their fragrance. Will they multiply like crocus and the daffs?

On another note, there must have been some spores in the load of mulch I used for these beds, as there are a dozen or more of these cup fungus colonies growing in these beds:

At least their color blends with the mulch. (Does anybody know what species these are?) I'm not concerned about mushrooms in the mulch, as I know they're helping to break it down and enrich the underlying soil. Go fungus!


So I'd say the bulb planting was a great success so far!

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