Red tulips bloom on a pleasant spring day

Today is a very pleasant spring day; a bit cool (max 65 °F, min 18 °F) and a bit windy, but lots of sun. Red tulips bloom in my garden for the first time. We had a few yellow and white tulips earlier. Most of our bulbs were daffodils, which multiply on their own.

Tulips and daffodils next to the birdbath in the gardenTulips and daffodils next to the birdbath in the garden. Photo credit: Abhijai Mathur Copyright: CC-BY-SA 3.0

Tulips sometimes come back the following year which means that you have to plant them fresh every year. Bethesda is a bit too hot for tulips to return the following year. However, these tulips are hybrids that promise to return.

Tulips and daffodils on the path down through the gardenTulips and daffodils on the path down through the garden. Photo credit: Abhijai Mathur Copyright: CC-BY-SA 3.0

I had not planted tulips in the past but so many people have commented positively on them that I am planning to plant another 100 of these in a different part of the garden in October.


Get Growing!

Tulip

Tulipa gesneriana

Perennial

tulips-get-growing

How to use them: Plant generous quantities bulbs in well-drained soil among perennial flower beds and borders.

Light

Part sun
Water

Low
Care

Moderate
Plant

Fall
Bloom

Spring
Zones

3 – 8

Daffodil Paperwhite

Narcissus papyraceus

Perennial

daffodils-get-growing

How to use them: Plant clusters of bulbs in well-drained soil among rock gardens or perennial flower beds.

Light

Full sun
Water

Low
Care

Low
Plant

Fall
Bloom

Late winter
Zones

5 – 9