Spring flower show

13 August 2008

It’s still summer despite the rain, but some are already thinking of spring! When our winters draw to a close, it can feel like spring will never arrive, but when it finally does, it’s bulbs that usually appear first.

It’s invigorating to see bluebells nodding in the sun, snowdrops appearing through the snow or the lesser-known but no less inspiring, lesser celandine blinking in the sun.

To see these spring flowers can raise our mood and encourage us to get into our parks and countryside. If you are keen to see some of these impressive shows of bulbs at their best, try some of the “National Trust properties (link to National Trust website)”:http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace.htm or “Ulster Wildlife Trust reserves (link to Ulster Wildlife Trust website)”:http://www.ulsterwildlifetrust.org/nature+reserves/naturereserves.htm, or even your local park!

Children and young people love to visit a local wood to see bluebells (with supervision and permission of course). This could spark an interest in growing bulbs and other plants and is ideal for school or youth groups!  But then you don’t need children as an excuse to go on a visit!

As well as being lovely for us to look at, bulbs are very beneficial for wildlife too. If you are thinking of planting some trees to create a woodland - the trees are the essential component, but there is more to a woodland than this. The “woodland floor should have other kinds of life too (article about planting wildflowers in woodland)”:http://www.cvni.org/biodiversity/advice/woodland/wildflowers/. This creates a fuller and richer habitat for different kinds of wildlife.

If this has inspired you to think about planting bulbs for yourself and you would like to find out more, we have some bulbs for sale.

If you are buying or have bought any bulbs, it is around this time of year to plant them (no later than the end of October).

Each bulb is best suited to a particular habitat. For information on each bulb and where it is best suited, click on the links below:

* “Bluebell”:http://www.cvni.org/wildflowernursery/wildflowers/bluebell
* “Wood Anemone”:http://www.cvni.org/wildflowernursery/wildflowers/wood-anemone
* “Ramsons (wild garlic)”:http://www.cvni.org/wildflowernursery/wildflowers/wild-garlic
* “Lesser Celandine”:http://www.cvni.org/wildflowernursery/wildflowers/lesser-celandine
* Wild Daffodil
* “Snowdrop”:http://www.cvni.org/wildflowernursery/wildflowers/snowdrop

Bulbs are 35p each - to order, please contact our Wildflower Nursery on 028 9064 5169 or email “CVNI-WFN@btcv.org.uk”:mailto:CVNI-WFN@btcv.org.uk.

Care should be taken to plant bulbs the correct way up. If there are any small hair-like roots appearing from the bulb they should be facing down. The best depth is about 5-8cm (2