For the past few weeks I’ve spent time digging tiny and not-so-tiny holes in the ground in my garden… planting bulbs. If you’ve visited my blog before you may have noticed I wrote I don’t have that much space, so where do I leave bulbs?

Bags and bags of flower bulbs… these are a couple I selected for the back yard. These didn’t all fit exactly under the hedge.

Last year I planted daffodils under the hedge. I liked the result so much that I want even more color under my hedges. And earlier in the year, too – flowers in April are really nice, but I did see bees much earlier than that due to a warm spring. And my garden had little to offer in March. So I have gone for different kinds of bulbs, some of which will start to flower as early as February, like anemones, and which will be joined or followed a bit later in the year by… tulips!

Why these flowers? Well firstly, because I need a splash of color in the garden for my own delight. Secondly, because these plants come in low-growing varieties. I’m planting these in semi-shaded edges – not even borders – and by keeping them low, I’m hoping to achieve a couple of things:

1. Happy tulips that get a bit of sun through the hedge in spring. The lower part of the hedge is a bit thinner and lets the sun’s rays filter through.
2. Plants that don’t risk getting caught, bent over and then squashed by our car. I’d really think it a shame. I did tell our son we’d have tulips in our garden a bit like his little red tulip (a left-over from a ‘Woezel en Pip’ baby toy). Yes, I bought red tulips – bright red ones for the edge beside the car, and tulips of a softer, slightly pinkish red for the back. I put those near the hedge too – but this time in order to shelter them.
3. Another reason for getting short tulips is the gusts of wind we get in our garden (or gardenette). Getting tulips 40 centimeters tall means I’ll be watching them anxiously in every storm and picking up their sad remains afterward. Nooo. I won’t do this to myself.

So anyway, I’ve mixed in anemones (white and purple, depending on the tulips’ expected hues) and yellow crocuses. Still have some small daffodil bulbs – where to put those?

All of this probably adds up to making the garden ‘ready for winter’ but it doesn’t feel like it – it’s a lot of digging, but it’s great to feel you’re preparing for… next spring!

Update: I’ve managed to find space in the unlikeliest corners and planted a couple of bulbs in two or three different pots. Still about 50 white alliums left and some anemones. Oh well… I’ll find a garden project somewhere!