Winter planting for Spring Bulbs..

Just in the nick of time, our bulb order arrived on the doorstep this morning, all ready for this weekend's bulb planting extravaganza (sounds better than admitting we have roped a few friends in to spend the day bending over planting thousands of little bulbs).

To ensure Willowbrook is a floral fantasy this spring, We are planting a huge variety of bulbs. Their placement has been meticulously planned on the garden maps. Firstly, we have the planting of the lakeside area with a variety of lillies, narcissi and irises...

Iris 'blue magic'...

Yellow Flag Iris...


Iris Versicolour...


and Iris Germanica...


Then we shall complete the Bluebell Walk with...

Bluebells (hyacinthoides ssp)


and Muscari ssp inc. 'Early Giant' and 'Americanum'...

Dotted around the Lake and Oak Grove will be various Freesias, including Cassis (pink), Yvonne (yellow), Ancona (purple), Oberon (red with yellow centre), and Argenta (white)...

We have a great many Narcissi species to plant as well. Under all the Tilia europea in The Lime Walk we shall plant Narcissus 'orangery' (split carona - below)...

Under the London Plane Trees up the drive we shall plant Narcissus 'rosy wonder' (both species below)...

and under all the Willows along the brook we shall plant...

Above: The early flowering Narcissus 'malvern city'

Below: The mid season flowering Narcissus 'carlton'

Below: The multiflowered Narcissus Erlicheer

By planting these species we should ensure a good long period of blooms.

We shall also under plant the woods with pockets of Croci...

Above: Crocus chrysanthus 'cream beauty'

Below: Crocus seiberi 'firefly'

Moving on to the flower border around the Potager garden, we shall plant...

Above: Hyacinthus orientalis 'Delft blue'

Below: Hyacinthus orientalis 'sky jacket'

and

Above: Hyacinthus orientalis 'Paul Herman'

Below: Hyacinthus orientalis 'pink surprise'

Around the potager and in the 8 standard bay pots we shall have a variety of 'flaming' and non flaming parrot tulips...

Below: The 'Air' Parrot Tulip - Pink with green edges

Below: 'Rococo' is a very dramatic red parrot with green frills.

The 'Super Parrot' - white and green. Very popular for bridal arrangements

Then there are the standard tulips. 'Spring Green' is another popular bridal option, with its similar colourings to the super parrot...


Below: The Standard Tulip 'London', is a great specimen of red tulip.

Below: 'Princess Irene' is an exceptional golden yellow specimen, a perfect seasonal compliment for One's Orange borders....

Some of the bulbs waiting to be planted...

I suspect it will take us a lot longer than one weekend to plant all the bulbs, but at least with a rotary hoe we won't have to prepare the soil manually like we did last weekend for all the buxus hedging. Whatever you are doing this weekend, I hope you have a colourful one.

Almost There...

Followers of Willowbrook's progress will know that the completion of the lake has been a long drawn out affair. It was the first large project we undertook at the park. The lake, a quarter of an acre, was dug out in June 2009. This was just before winter and it then filled with water before we could line it. By the first summer the lining had not been fabricated (as we were a long time in deciding exact material and thickness and manufacturers (UV stabilised vs non-UV, 500 micron vs 1000 micron, prefabricated and welded vs spray on rubber... Who knew there were so many options!).

Above: The field before

Below: The Lake and Bluebell walk after

By the time we had the liner by the lake ready to go, we had come to the following autumn, and due to intermittent rainy days falling on the only days the installer could come down from Auckland, we were then into Spring of last year. In the interim we pumped out the water, enough to build the jetty. As you can see, soon after the jetty was finished it flooded again. It looked lovely over winter, but the problem is that it dries out over summer. An unseasonally wet spring prevented us once again from completing the project. Now, finally, the stars have aligned, and the lining company was able to make it down, and the weather held out, and now we have a 1/4 acre of strong butyl rubber liner installed, and the edges ready for planting next month with irises, lillies, pickerel, and narcissi. The water is on, and we shall wait patiently for it to fill (as will our ducks). Given that we will not be shooting any wild ducks on our property this season, we guess that it will become a safehaven for the local mallards come May.

Above: The small hill destined to be the site of a small neoclassical folly...

Below: Delusions of grandeur????

Lily of the lake...

'Now folds the lily all her sweetness up,
And slips into the bosom of the lake:
So fold thyself, my dearest, thou, and slip

Into my bosom and be lost in me.'

-From The Princess, Part 7, by Alfred, Lord Tennyson.

We have just ordered our plants for in and around the lake. We want the lake to have plenty of colour for as much of the year as possible, as well as dense reeds and greenery for the local birdlife to nest in. Waterlillies seem a must..

I found this fantastic collection of antique botanical colour plates. Here are some examples from the collection, along with some photos of other plants we will plant around the lake:

Irises


Waterlillies

Yellow Spatterdock

Water Hyacinth


Pond Pickerel


Marsh Hypericum (St. John's Wort)


Water Forget me not


And of course some more Narcissus...


I wandered lonely as a cloud
that floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden Daffodils
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

- William Wordsworth.