Rather than the sandy coastal soil Robin has, the soil at my present
garden is clay. Here, too, cyclamen tubers haven't gone to a deeper
level, except for Cyclamen repandum, which has a reputation for growing
deep (Cyclamen graecum does also, but I have it in a sandy, gritty
medium). Cyclamen hederifolium are coming up in the bulb lawn and also
in regular lawn grass nearby, and I have the mowing service set their
blades high.
As for competition from turf grasses, this is limited where I have my
bulb lawn by the presence of three very large Douglas firs. Their root
systems and shade keep the grass thin most of the year, and probably the
soil is drier and cooler too. It would be difficult to plant bulbs as I
described in the "tools" discussion if the turf were typical lawn
grasses. The main problem I have with this area is invasion by weeds
such as dandelion, Hieracium (hawkweed) and in the past 2 years, an
annual geranium or erodium. I can't use a lawn herbicide for fear of
damaging the bulbs, but I spot-spray the perennial weeds in summer. The
immediate drip zone of the trees is grass-free and mostly Cyclamen
hederifolium, but some other bulbs are showing up there as volunteers.
Debris shed by the trees mulches this area.
As for criteria in choosing bulbs, I keep them short, except for
Narcissus obvallaris, which flowers very early and can be mown by early
June. Because I threw a basket full of miscellaneous bulbs down before
replacing the sod, there are a few taller things, such as Fritillaria
acmopetala and Gladiolus tristis, but they just have to deal with the
mowing schedule. I am concerned about the survival of Anemone coronaria,
which is so pretty in the later part of the bulb season but may need
more time to ripen its foliage. You can also look at whether a plant has
lax leaves or erect ones, since the former will lie beneath the mower
blades; I think this is one reason Crocus tommasinianus is so common in
lawns in the Pacific Northwest (check the McClure & Zimmerman
catalog/website for select varieties, which are much prettier than the
common pale lavender type). That crocus does self-sow but I can't call
it a "pest." If you can get the low-growing species of Ornithogalum
(easy from seed), they're very attractive in grass, but avoid the common
Ornithogalum umbellatum ("Star of Bethlehem"). The common snowdrop
Galanthus nivalis might also work. Puschkinia is good, and perhaps some
Muscari (not armeniacum or azureum, which are invasive here). I have a
few of the small autumnal Colchicum species in grass, mostly Colchicum
boissieri, which spreads horizontally.
When you see bulbs in their native habitats, many of them coexist with
grasses and grazing animals. A couple of weeks ago I saw huge flocks and
herds being moved up overland to the alpine meadows in Georgia, where
great populations of spring bulbous plants were flowering. Many of the
plants are probably avoided by grazers, however, being toxic (e.g.
Galanthus, Scilla (sensu lato), Trollius). Too bad Fritillaria
worldwide, and Calochortus in North America, are not as poisonous.
Jane McGary, Portland, Oregon, USA
On 6/9/2019 6:31 AM, Hansen Nursery wrote:
> When planting bulbs in turf, how do you determine which bulbs can handle the
> conditions involved, not so much moisture, but competition from the turf
> itself? I notice that my cyclamen, at least under the sandy soil conditions
> I have, stay on top of the soil and don't root in sometimes. (I just threw
> out seed and waited to see what happened.)
>
> What criteria do you use, especially in the Pacific Northwest? I'm assuming
> some bulbs can't handle the conditions we have, others are too big and some
> become pests...
>
> Robin
> Hansen Nursery
> robin@hansennursery.com
>
>
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