Choosing Spring Bulbs

A little hint of what the pot should look like come springtime

As a family, we are ones for tradition: every morning starts with a cup of tea, after dinner we all have a decaf coffee (rebels), and every Spring there is a Spring bulb pot.  Its the one thing the mother does, without fail, every year, and she is masterful at it.  How she crams so many bulbs into one pot I don't know, although I do now because I watched her do it this year.  In fact I was rather involved in the entire process, far more than normal and therefore its likely to be a real damp squib come Spring.

The reason I was so involved this year, other than because I now insist on being consulted on anything to do with the garden, was because I was with the mother when the bulbs were bought.  Being an ex-designer I of course believe that I know best about colour schemes so kept sticking my spoke in and we have gone for a completely different look this year.  Last year the mother's pot was a triumph, looking back at it in one of my first posts, reminds me just how excellent it was.  There was height, texture, colour, basically it was a pot of pure springtime joy.  It had a rather definite colour scheme: white, pink and purple.  This year we have gone for completely different colours, which Im now hoping will not be a mistake.
Owing to the fact that it is bulb season and therefore all pictures just make it look like you have become overly obsessed with onions and large garlic, I have photographed the fronts of the packets to spice up the bulb monotony and so you have some idea of what it should all look like in the end.

The hand written numbers in blue are the depth in inches they want to be
planted at, it helps the planting process apparently

Shogun bulbs

It all started with spotting these orange 'Shogun' Praestans which are wildflowering Tulips.  I kind of think if your relying on one pot to give you all your springtime excitement, then the colours want to be in your face bright, which these certainly are.  Particularly like the contrasting blue stems, and as blue and orange are perfect colour companions the colour scheme evolved from there.

Muscari- a very small and crusty bulb

After this year's discovery of Grape Hyacinths, my new favourite spring bulb, they were always going to be making a followup appearance in this year's version.  I don't know where last year's bulbs went so I got a new packet which appears to be a different variety to last year's.  Light blue goes well with orange so we should be good.

Gavota Tulips breaking free from their rusty shells

Get the colour of these 'Gavota' tulips, they are the perfect colour combination just with themselves.  I don't think many people would immediately think to put bright orange with raspberry but when you see in a flower it reminds you just what a great combination that is.  No way these weren't coming home.

Tangerine Beauty bulbs, very similar to the other Tulip bulbs

Tulip 'Vvedenskyi- tangerine beauty' is not actually the most exciting tulip I have ever seen but I thought the colour would add to the overall ambience of the pot.

Crocus bulbs getting way too carried away with themselves with their tiny pale shoots  

I don't like crocus, but considering this variety has done such a good job of colour co-ordinating with the pot scheme I have allowed them in.  I guess I can admit that they are quite pretty, but I don't really want to.

Again the narcissus are off, despite not yet being planted

I hadn't really planned on these making an appearance in this pot... but never mind.  I love these, so small and cute, and strangely geometric.  I have had a real thing for daffodils and narcissi this year, a lot more on this to follow!
Rather than let this drag on too much I will stop here and leave the actual planting till next time.