On Flash and Fizzle Plants
Spring is such a wonderful time of year. When you step out into the yard or the patio you can start to smell the earth coming to life. Often bulb plants are the first to greet us - snow crocuses, daffodils, hyacinth, tulips…They are welcome signs of life after a long winter. These bulb-based plants pack so much energy in their bulb it allows for the brilliant blossoms that accompany them. They are great in the moment and then what do you do with them after they fade?! Many of these Flash and Fizzle plants bring great joy for a relatively short part of the growing season and then leave foliage behind that isn’t always appealing. Other late spring arrivals that land in this category are Peonies (lovely peonies) and Irises - though those are more tuberous roots than bulbs.
What is a gardener to do with this conundrum? Of course it all comes down to preference. For me? I choose to always plant these Flash and Fizzle plants in moderation and always with surrounding plants that will carry the aesthetic of the garden through the rest of the growing season. Some practical tips:
Don’t cut your greens back on these plants. It’s important for the greens to re-energize the bulb/root to prepare the flower to bloom again the next year.
Tulip greens and daffodil greens will eventually brown and then can be removed.
I choose to braid my daffodil greens to add a bit of whimsy to the garden. I’ve seen some gardeners put little gnome hats on top of these braids to make it appear like a sleeping gnome with a braided beard.
I try to plant tulips behind other perennials that will rise from their slumber after the tulip has faded.
Peonies and Irises - I have a tendency to pack these in along with other plants that will reach a similar height but will outshine the greens after the flowers have faded. Ornamental grasses are great to plant near irises and I choose to plant cone flowers or bee balm near my peonies.
Have you ever noticed that sometimes - if you are lucky - after these plants fade, they will leave a seed pod behind?! Seeds are not a common way to start tulips unless you are growing them to sell them. When you plant a tulip seed, it can take up to 3 years to grow to the size of a full blown flower-producing bulb. I harvest my seed pods of the sprint bulb bloomers once the pod is dried and I sprinkle the seeds in my woods. These flowers which require sunlight can be planted in normally shady areas because your tree canopy won’t be in bloom before the flowers bloom - so they get full sun. One of these years, I will have tulips popping up all over the place.
Happy gardening my friends!
