Do you have a favorite flower?

I mean, a really favorite flower? One that stands out beyond all others? One you like to grow; one you like to buy in a bunch; one you adore to receive as a gift?

For me, it’s a tulip! I adore them. Yes, oh for sure, I love sunflowers, snapdragons, peonies, iris and petunias….but the tulip stands alone!

Each fall I pour over the catalogs. It’s the color, of course, that grabs my attention. I buy at least 100 bulbs every year. And, what’s more, each spring after the tulips have bloomed, I dig up each and every one! No repeats for me.. They are never the same the next year, you can’t possibly know where they are going to pop up again, and it’s difficult, if not impossible, to garden around them all summer. Much easier to dig them up (it’s very satisfying!) and start fresh in the fall. That way I know exactly which color combination I have put in which garden…

Here is a sampling of this year’s crop in the front of our house. I wasn’t sure about orange but now I am positive: it works beautifully! And it’s even better combined with that deep magenta.

Tulips 6

Tulips 5

Tulips 4

Tulips 3

Tulips 2

Tulips 1

I’ll be showing you more of my garden, so stay tuned!

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