Fall 2011

November 2011

With all of the basement and attic renovation going on I didn’t get to plant many bulbs. I was able to order my mother some bulbs from Old House Gardens, a real treasure I stumbled upon. This company has made it’s business by protecting and propagating heirloom bulbs, tubers, rhizomes and fleshy rooted plants. Their website is bubbling over with useful information on how to grow their wares and the history of each plant. Buying heirloom plants falls in line with the same idea of buying locally grown food. The plants you receive will be stronger, more fragrant, and disease resistant than the plants you can find at your local big box store. Their stock hasn’t been weakened by careless breeding for larger and longer lasting blossoms.

By the time I ordered all that was left was daffodils. Everything else in the catalog/website was sold out! I like daffodils though, they remind me of a scene from an old version of Alice in Wonderland where they are trumpeting and giggling at Alice as she wanders about looking for the Caterpillar. Their sunshine yellow, white and red blossoms are a happy and early introduction to Spring. I planted them in between the Iris’. They are squirrel resistant, and perennials. They are truly a heirloom species since we know they were grown in ancient Greece – anyone remember the story of Narcissus?

“Thus perished Narcissus, a victim to his ignorance of physical science, but the gods, in consideration no doubt of his having been nipt in the bud, and cut off in the flower of his youth, kindly transformed him into a daffodil, thus enabling him once in every year to resume his pristine seedy appearance.^“

October 2011