This is part two of a three part series on Fall Bulbs.
In part one of this series, Choosing Fall Bulbs for Spring Blooms, I gave myself a challenge - create a spring garden on a budget of $100. I started with a wish list of all the items I would like. After doing a little research, I chipped away at my wish list and narrowed it down based on color, height and price. The main color scheme of my spring blooms will be purple/violet/blue, white and yellow. The plant heights will vary from about 6″ to 24″. To get the biggest bang for my buck and to make the most impact, I tried to choose items with large quantities of bulbs at the most reasonable prices. Here is a list of the items I decided to go with:
- Blue Pearl Crocus
-irridescent pale blue
40 bulbs for 10.95
- Pickwick Large Flowering Crocus
-violet on white background
20 bulbs for 10.95
- Blue Grape Hyacinths
-cobalt blue, grape-like clusters
20 bulbs for 6.95
- Queen of the Violets Hyacinths
-lavender-violet w/darker stripes
8 bulbs for $14.95
- Tulip ‘Rai’
-exotic shape, deep violet, frilled, ruffled & flared w/yellow-green accents
5 bulbs for $9.95
- White Tulips
?
- Daffodils ‘New Baby’-greenish-white petals w/dark yellow cup, up to 4 flowers per stem
20 bulbs for $8.95
- Blue Drumstick Allium
-clear blue florets, 1-1/2″ balls
12 bulbs for $5.95
- Dog Tooth Violets
-clusters of small, lily-like flowers
10 bulbs for $16.95
I knew I wanted white tulips, but didn’t know yet what variety. The total, not including white tulips, came to $85.60 for 135 bulbs. Finding some white tulip bulbs at a price that fits within my total $100 budget shouldn’t be an issue.
Bad News - Good News
I took my list of bulbs to a local garden center. As is often the case when you go shopping for something specific, you can’t find what you’re looking for. The bad news - I was able to find some of the items on my list, but not all of them. The good news - the prices at my local garden center were considerably lower than what I found online. With a little substitution in the variety, but little to no change in the color scheme, this is what I brought home:
- Crocus ‘Flower Record’ (substitution for Pickwick)
40 bulbs for $10.00
- Crocus ‘Jeanne d’arc’ (substitution for Blue Pearl, 10 more bulbs!)
30 bulbs for $10.00
- Grape Hyacinths (double the quantity and for less $!)
40 Bulbs for $6.00
- Hyacinths Delft Blue (sub. for Queen of the Violets, more bulbs, less $!)
12 Bulbs for $10.00
- Tulip ‘Rai’ (exactly what I wanted and more for less $!)
10 bulbs for $9.50
- Narcissus ‘Ice Follies’ (sub. for Daffodils ‘New Baby’)
14 bulbs for $10.00
- Allium Caeruleum (sub. for Blue Drumstick Allium, more for less $!)
20 bulbs for $4.95
- Allium ‘Hair’ (a very funky addition!)
10 bulbs for $4.95
More Good News
My total came to $65.40 for 176 bulbs. That puts me way ahead of the game - 30 more bulbs than anticipated for about $20 less than expected! I still want to get white tulips and the Dog Tooth Violets.
While selecting and making your bulb purchases online is convenient and you have a much better chance of getting the bulbs that you desire, purchasing your bulbs in person at your local garden center can prove to be very beneficial from a financial perspective. My dollars went much farther than they would have if I had purchased online. Having to make substitutions was not a terrible inconvenience, and considering that my challenge was to get the biggest bang for my $100 bucks, purchasing in person was definitely the right way for me to go.
I’ll update this post with a total bulb count and dollars spent as soon as I finish my shopping!
UPDATE - Oct. 23, 2007
I found beautiful white tulip bulbs at Home Depot - a package of 14 bulbs for $4.89. They are ‘Purissima’ and will grow to 14-16″ tall. No luck finding Dog Tooth Violets yet.
UPDATE - Oct. 24, 2007
It looks like there won’t be any Dog Tooth Violets in my spring garden. I couldn’t find them anywhere. In place of the yellow Dog Tooth Violets I’m adding Golden Yellow Crocuses. I picked up 30 bulbs for $11.98. I also found these:
They are called Camassia esculenta. Twenty bulbs for $8.00. This brings my total bulb count up to 240 and a total of $90.27 spent.
Now, if I could just get them into the ground and keep the squirrels from eating them before they bloom in the spring!
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