Jul
25
Posted under
Flower bulb care
A great way to raise money is with a Spring flower bulb fundraiser. This is usually done as an order-taker sale from a brochure showing colorful pictures and descriptions of available flowers and plants.
You collect payment in advance, place your order, and arrange for pickup or home delivery when your supplier ships your group order. You can do a flower bulb fundraiser at any time of the year, but they work best in late Winter when people start thinking about their gardens and landscaping.
Getting started Picking the right supplier is key to your fundraising success. You want a company that’s been in business for many years and that has a strong fundraising program.
Request a sample catalog from your top three choices and compare product offerings and prices. You’ll sell more if the prices are low and the brochure is colorful and easy to read.
Once you’ve picked your supplier, there are two ways to generate sales. One is the traditional door-to-door sales approach and the other is hosting a spring gardening event. There’s no reason why you can’t do both!
Sales tips For in person sales, following a sales script produces the best results. There are three things you want to do right away with each prospect.
1 – Look the customer in the eye and smile as you extend your sales brochure while introducing yourself. Example: ‘Hi, I’m Jane Jones…’
2 – Clearly explain in one sentence who you are and why you are raising funds. Example: ‘Hi, I’m Jane Jones with the Millbrook High Band and we’re raising funds for new uniforms with these great flower bulbs.’
3 – Ask for their help and use the word ‘because’ because it’s a subconscious psychological trigger word. Example: ‘Can you help us out with an order because the old uniforms are really worn out?’
Additionally, recommending a favorite item gets the person looking for their own favorite to order. Example: ‘I really like the hyacinths because they smell so good.’
Garden event tips Hosting a gardening event is a lot more work than selling to family, friends, and neighbors, but it offers a lot more profit potential. You can offer a lot of related products such as mulch, pine straw, flowering plants, gardening tools, lawn service, etc.
Contact merchants who offer gardening-related products and sell display space at your event where they can show their wares. Contract with nurseries for larger plants and take a cut of sales.
Work with suppliers of mulch and pine straw to offer those products that require delivery. Sell them yourself with a markup added or have them staff a sales table at the event for a share of the revenue instead of a booth fee.
An of course, sell flower bulbs from the brochures at the highest traffic location. Adding displays of those particular flowers will greatly increase sales.
Publicity Any fundraising event requires publicity, so be sure to get a press release out to all the major media outlets in your area. Cover the who, what, when where, why and how of your fundraiser.
Make sure the summary paragraph features a newsworthy angle and describes why you are raising funds. After all, these organizations are looking for news that will interest their viewers, readers, or listeners.
Summary A flower bulb fundraiser is a great way to raise much needed funds for any group. You can do the traditional door-to-door sales approach or you can turn it into an event.
The choice is yours, but whichever one you choose, have fun with your flower bulb fundraiser!
Article written by Kimberly Reynolds.
Jun
16
Posted under
Flower bulb care
If you find yourself too impatient to wait on the spring to bring flowers, you can get spring flowers earlier by forcing bulbs indoors. It is wonderful to have tulips and crocuses blooming in your windowsill as you watch the snow fall outside.
Tips for forcing bulbs indoors:
#1. Garden centers begin selling spring bulbs in the fall since the bulbs need to be planted then to produce flowers outdoors in the spring. The best bulbs for forcing are tulips, hardy narcissus, hyacinths, crocuses and daffodils. Purchase your bulbs and while planting outdoors in fall, save a few of each type to force indoors.
#2. The bulbs need to be kept at a constant temperature of around 40 degrees for a 15 week period. This mimics winter. You can store your bulbs in your outdoor sheds, freezer or refrigerator for this 15 week period as long as the temperature remains at a constant 40 degrees or so. If you use the freezer method and if you have a frost free freezer, the air is much drier so check often to make sure the bulbs are moist. You do not want the bulbs to be too moist to cause rot, but drying out will damage or kill them. If you have room in the refrigerator, you can store bulbs in a paper bag with some moistened peat moss.
#3. After the 15 week winter period, you may plant the bulbs in small pots filled with potting soil or you can use small clear glass bowls filled with marbles. Place several in the potting soil so that the tips of the bulbs are sticking out from the dirt. Pay attention to the shape of the bulb when planting. The tip end where the stems and flowers emerge should be showing through the dirt when planting. If using marbles in a glass bowl, anchor the bulbs so when you add water on the bottom tips get wet. As the roots form, it may be necessary to change the water frequently. Make sure to keep the roots in water and the bulb resting out of the water.
#4. After sticking the bulbs in dirt or marbles, place the containers in a bright window sill. Keep the soil slightly moist until you see the shoots are about 3 to 4 inches tall. Do not fertilize. After the shoots have reached 4 inches, move the pots to a bright sun filled spot and wait until the buds form. After the buds start showing color, move them out of the bright sunshine and back to a bright indirect location. Keep the soil constantly moist during the flowering stage.
#5. After your flowers are spent and the leaves are yellowing, you can transplant them into your outdoor garden. They will not flower again outdoors until the following spring. If you want to save the bulbs to force inside next year, you need to reduce the amount of water. Only water enough to keep the leaves from wilting as they continue to die back. Cut and discard the flower stems and store the entire pot in a cool dry area. You can dig the bulbs back up and store them individually. Make sure these bulbs have enough air circulation to prevent rot and mold. You may wish to store them in dry peat moss in a cool dry area.
Forcing bulbs make very good Christmas gifts. Allow the 15 week period to coincide with the holidays. You can give as a kit, with the bulbs already planted and ready to sprout or give the container with the shoots already forming. Make sure to enclose a small card with the type of bulb and directions for taking care of it during and after blooming. Hyacinths are generally larger and will look good as a singular plant, although some people do not care for its highly fragrant odor. Tulips, crocuses, daffodils and narcissus look best when several bulbs are planted together. You can mix and match for a variety of colors and flowers.
May
05
Posted under
Flower bulb care
With fall just around the corner and the gardening season winding down, it’s hard to think about planting. But that’s exactly what you should do if you want to see some bright blooms early next spring. Tulips, daffodils, crocuses and other spring flowers start with bulbs planted in the fall.
What’s nice about these early spring flowers is that they are usually done blooming before perennials and other plants take over the flower bed. Keeping that in mind, take a walk around your yard and look at areas where you want to add some early color to your landscape in the spring. Garden catalogs with pictures of different types of bulbs can help you select the type and color of flowers you want in your yard.
Consider different heights and colors of plants and how they might look next to each other. A row of lavender tulips, for example, can provide the perfect backdrop for a row of shorter pink hyacinths. You may want to sketch out your plan on some paper to indicate where you would like to have spring flowers in your yard. This will also give you an idea of how many bulbs you will need to purchase.
If you are as comfortable around a computer as you are the garden, you can try landscaping software. Some programs let you plug in a picture of your home and simulate various plantings. While it might be a bit of overkill if you only want a spring flower plan, it can give you a more holistic approach to your landscaping. You can map out a strategy of what to plant so you will have blooms all summer long, not just in the spring.
You can also take the low-tech, no planning approach of a spring surprise. Try randomly planting different bulbs in flower beds and other areas of your yard. Consider planting some in areas of your lawn that are fairly protected like under trees or near your home. If the grass starts growing, you can always mow around the plants until they are done blooming. After a long winter, it’s a pleasant surprise to see colorful blooms popping out of the ground from bulbs you forgot about.
Most spring bulbs appear on shelves in September and October. If you are a bargain hunter and willing to take a little risk, watch for clearance sales on bulbs late in the fall at garden shops. I have planted these clearance bulbs late in the season with a decent success rate of blooms the following spring. Be sure to plant before the ground freezes.
While you are at the garden shop, be sure to buy a bulb-planting tool to simplify your work. Most spring bulbs should be planted at a depth of four inches or more, depending on the type of flower. Be sure to follow the instructions on the package and check how much space you should have between each bulb.
Once your bulbs are in the ground, you may need to protect your investment from deer, chipmunks and other garden invaders. A publication from University of Vermont Extension by Dr. Leonard Perry suggests placing fine mesh over your plantings to help prevent rodents and other animals from digging up your bulbs. After your flowers bloom, the same publication recommends leaving the leaves on the plants until they turn yellow to ensure the bulbs get enough nutrients for the next season.
With some advance planting and a little luck, your work in the fall will be rewarded the following spring. The bright blooms will help you forget about winter and get you motivated for another season of gardening.
Apr
24
Posted under
Flower bulb care
The flower of a tulip is usually formed in July. When they receive enough care, a tulip flower is formed for the coming season (for tulips, sometime in late July). But the lust for tulips was not so much a enthusiasm for the flower, the bulbs became an actual type of currency.
The leaves are four to six inches in diameter with four lobes that are notched into the rough “tulip-flower” shape. In garden tulips there is considerable diversity both in color, flower shape, and time of blooming. The common method to group tulips is by blooming time and flower height. These shorter tulips grow from 15-25cm in height and flower from mid-March.
In the last weeks of April you can catch tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and narcissi all flowering simultaneously. In Holland, where spring is long and cool, tulip flowers last up to six weeks. Each tulip flower has a glass tube inside to protect the bulb from the weather and stands 24″ high. Triumph Tulips: The cup-shaped flowers are borne on strong stems and stand up well under poor weather conditions. ‘Plaisir’ Tulip Double late tulips are also known as peony-flowered tulips, alluding to their large double flowers. These early-flowering tulips are known for their intensely-colored flowers that open wide in the sunshine.
Although the Dutch didn’t know it at the time, these striped flowers were produced when a tulip bulb became infected with the Mosaic virus. Huge collections of nearly worthless tulips became the genesis of the modern Dutch flower-bulb industry of today. The tulip’s entry into Dutch society came in the 16th century when diplomats from Constantinople were said to have brought over the flowering plant. These flowers, such as the Yellow Crown tulips, could be purchased cheaply by even the poorer segments of society. Cut some closed tulip flowers (or flowers from another type of plant).
Related Blogs
Dec
13
Posted under
Flower bulb care
Want Spring Color This Winter? Just Force The Issue
Spring is but a distant memory. What sticks out in our minds is what kind of spring it was. The bulk of spring, April, is a wet cold miserable time to be in the garden. Crops in out gardens and in the fields of farmers were ruined. But oh what a month May is. Beautiful warm temperatures and the most co-operative nature has been to gardeners in along time. As the leaves fall in colored splendor they remind us that spring is just around the corner. Around a cold dark sometimes snowy winter though. However if we just look back at May and see how nature cooperated and made up for the rains of April we can have spring spring up a little early indoors. The trick is to plan now and plant now.
A visit to any garden center in the fall will give you great ideas for spring bulb gardening. Tulips in rainbows of colors, daffodils and narcissus that deer refuse to eat. Crocus and snowdrops defy their dainty stature by poking their heads up through the snow. And watch out for hyacinths! They give many gardeners an itching reaction almost as strong as their fragrance. In fact in Holland employees are paid extra to work sorting hyacinths!
With all that beauty displayed on the package who can wait until spring for all that color?
Well it turns out that nature is beat Madison Avenue to the marketing game when it comes to the “I want it now” consumer. While you cannot have spring now you can have it in a few weeks if you simply force the issue. Spring bulbs can be coaxed to bloom indoors well before St. Patrick Day arrives.
The easiest to force are paper whites. I fact these pungent flowers will not survive outside at all. Paper whites do not need soil to bloom just a vase with a narrow neck to hold the bulb. Below the bulb water should be place just to be low the bottom of the bulb. Warm rooms will encourage the roots to descend into the water and green shoots to emerge from the top. Paper whites can also be grown in shallow bowls that do not have drainage holes. Line the bottom of the bowl with stones, place paper whites in odd numbers close together on the rocks. Fill in between the bulbs with more rocks. Add some water to the bottom of the bowl and the bulbs will be gin to grow. These indoor blooming narcissus also come in yellow.
Many other bulbs can be forced indoors as well. Tulips planted in shallow containers filled with lightweight soil can be planted now. After planting water well and place
Related Blogs
Oct
18
Posted under
Flower bulb care
When most people think of bulbs they often think of daffodils or other similar flowers. However, the bulbous variey of flowers goes well beyond that.
While tulips, hyacinths and snowdrops also belong with the ‘true’ bulb family, there are many flowers that have corms, rhizomes or tubers. These include agapanthus and hippeastrums, dahlias, cannas and other lilies, irises, begonias, anemones and amaryllis, to name just a few.
Not only do bulbs do the work of reproducing the plant, they store food for those months when the leaves die and the plant is dormant. Thus, when the conditions are right the new plant has all it needs to thrust new shoots up into the sunlight.
Most bulbs need moist, rich, free draining soil and a sunny position to grow happily. Many flower in the spring, but such is their diversity, it is possible to have bulbs flowering in every month of the year.
To grow bulbs such as tulips in a temperate region, keep them in the refrigerator for four to eight weeks before planting out at the coldest time of year. In cold ares, plant in late autumn. Tulips like warm, dry summers alkaline soil. They may be affected by aphids, or a fungal condition called ‘tulip fire’ if there is too much moisture about. Their vibrant colors make them well worth a place in the garden.
Bulbs will usually do well if their natural habitat is approximated in the garden. For instance, daffodils are meadow flowers, so like plenty of sun. They will naturalize successfully in the lawn and flower early before the grass becomes too competitive. It’s best not to mow for at least six weeks after the flowers die, because the leaves provide food to the bulb for next years’ growth.
Woodland bulbs like bluebells and snowdrops will do better in a semi-shaded or a dappled sun position. They do well under deciduous trees. Spring-flowering bulbs may be planted near a well-used path or where they can be seen from a window to save trekking over soggy lawns to admire them.
Most bulbs can be grown successfully in containers, but need at least four inches ((10 cm)) of soil below them and 2-4 inches (5-10 cm) above. It’s a good idea to plant bulbs in a pot and bury it in the garden to prevent them from being accidentally hoed during a weeding session. If you have trouble with rodents eating your bulbs, plant them inside a wire cage buried in the garden.
Many bulbous varieties grow easily and are quite tolerant. Do your research, however. Some of the more unusual ones can be found via mail order or on the internet, so take the time to look for them. You’ll be pleased with the result.
Related Blogs
Oct
13
Posted under
Flower bulb care 
Bulbs are among the most popular of all flowering plants, due to their hardiness, low price and beauty. It is hard to beat the color variety of a garden bed full of bulbs, and planting bulbs that bloom in different seasons can guarantee a season full of beautiful flowers.Hyacinths (Dutch Hyacinth)
The Dutch hyacinth is one of the most instantly recognizable, and most popular, of all the varieties of bulb plants. The Dutch hyacinth blooms in the spring and features the well known foot high spires with their small bell shaped and very fragrant flowers. Hyacinths come in a wide varieties of colors, including red, pink, buff, white, blue and purple. The Dutch hyacinth grows best in colder areas, and it can last from year to year. In these cold water climates, the hyacinth is best planted in September of October.Those of you not familiar with the latest on varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening now have at least a basic understanding. But there’s more to come. Keep Goin!Irises should be planted in July or August in cold climates and in September or October in warmer areas. Irises are actually rhizomes, and they should be spaced from one to two feet apart, with the tops placed right below the surface of the soil. Irises grow best in full sunlight or light shade, and they benefit from a regular watering schedule during their growing season.Oriental lilies bloom later in the year, usually in midsummer or early autumn. Oriental lilies have stems from two to ix feet in height, and they feature large and fragrant flowers up to nine inches in length. These beautiful flowers feature pink and white petals with stripes and speckles, and they provide a striking addition to any garden.Lilly bulbs should be planted as quickly as possible after they are bought, since these particular bulbs do not keep well. If it is necessary to delay planting, the bulbs should be stored in a cool place. It is important to examine the bulbs carefully before they are planted, and any shriveled bulbs should be placed in peat moss or moist sand until they have recovered. Lilies tend to do best in full sun or partial shade, and like other bulbs they benefit from regular watering during their growth and blooming phases.
Of course, it’s impossible to put everything about varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening into just one article. But you can’t deny that you’ve just added to your understanding about varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening, and that’s time well spent.
Related Blogs
Jul
21
Posted under
Flower bulb care
Do you ever feel like you know just enough about varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening to be dangerous? Let’s see if we can fill in some of the gaps with the latest info from varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening experts.
Bulbs are among the most popular of all flowering plants, due to their hardiness, low price and beauty. It is hard to beat the color variety of a garden bed full of bulbs, and planting bulbs that bloom in different seasons can guarantee a season full of beautiful flowers.
This article focuses on a few of the most popular varieties of bulbs. Some of the most popular bulb varieties available to the home gardener include:
Hyacinths (Dutch Hyacinth)
The Dutch hyacinth is one of the most instantly recognizable, and most popular, of all the varieties of bulb plants. The Dutch hyacinth blooms in the spring and features the well known foot high spires with their small bell shaped and very fragrant flowers. Hyacinths come in a wide varieties of colors, including red, pink, buff, white, blue and purple. The Dutch hyacinth grows best in colder areas, and it can last from year to year. In these cold water climates, the hyacinth is best planted in September of October.
IN areas where the weather is milder, hyacinth bulbs will not last from one year to the next. In these more temperate areas, hyacinths are best treated as an annual and replanted each year, preferably in October, November or December. It is best to plant hyacinth bulbs four to five inches deep, and to space them from four to five inches apart as well. Hyacinths grow best in full sunlight, and they benefit from regular watering, especially during their blooming and growth periods.
Those of you not familiar with the latest on varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening now have at least a basic understanding. But there’s more to come. Keep Goin!
Iris
The most frequently seen variety of irises are the bearded varieties. Bearded irises are striking plants, and they appear in a dazzling array of colors and combinations of colors. Irises appear in a variety of sizes as well, with very small varieties and very large ones as well.
Irises should be planted in July or August in cold climates and in September or October in warmer areas. Irises are actually rhizomes, and they should be spaced from one to two feet apart, with the tops placed right below the surface of the soil. Irises grow best in full sunlight or light shade, and they benefit from a regular watering schedule during their growing season.
Lilium
The lillium is the scientific name given to the Asiatic and oriental hybrid lily, and they are very popular bulb plants. These Asiatic lilies bloom early in the summer, and they range in height from a mere six inches to a towering 4 feet. These lilies feature blossoms ranging in size from four to six inches and in colors like white, yellow, orange, pink and red.
Oriental lilies bloom later in the year, usually in midsummer or early autumn. Oriental lilies have stems from two to ix feet in height, and they feature large and fragrant flowers up to nine inches in length. These beautiful flowers feature pink and white petals with stripes and speckles, and they provide a striking addition to any garden.
Asiatic and oriental lily bulbs are best planted spaced about a foot apart. Smaller bulbs should be covered with a layer of soil two to three inches thick, which medium sized bulbs need a layer of three to four inches and large bulbs should be covered with four to six inches of soil.
Lilly bulbs should be planted as quickly as possible after they are bought, since these particular bulbs do not keep well. If it is necessary to delay planting, the bulbs should be stored in a cool place. It is important to examine the bulbs carefully before they are planted, and any shriveled bulbs should be placed in peat moss or moist sand until they have recovered.
The most commonly seen problem encountered when growing bulbs is a viral infection, and unfortunately that infection is incurable. The best way to avoid infection is to buy only the healthiest bulbs from the best sources. Any lilies showing mottled or very stunted leaves should be destroyed.
Lilies tend to do best in full sun or partial shade, and like other bulbs they benefit from regular watering during their growth and blooming phases.
Of course, it’s impossible to put everything about varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening into just one article. But you can’t deny that you’ve just added to your understanding about varieties of bulbs – bulb gardening, and that’s time well spent.
Related Blogs
Jun
26
Posted under
Flower bulb care
I often notice when visiting gardens the great quantities of Daffodils and other early bulbs that we plant to herald in the spring. But how do we ensure we have a great display each year?
The early flowering bulbs
Quite a few seasoned gardeners have had their first horticultural experience by the planting of a few Daffodil or Tulip bulbs, thus spurring them onto more adventurous plantings. At the end of April the very early flowering bulbs will come to the end of their blooming season. This group of early bloomers includes Daffodils, Hyacinths, Bluebells, Crocus, Snowdrops and early Tulips. All these bulbs will flower well for any gardener the first growing season but for them to bloom well the following seasons we must give them some care.
Dieback not tieback
All bulbs leaves must be allowed a minimum of six weeks after flowering to die down, so if these bulbs are planted in a lawn that area of lawn must remain uncut for six weeks. Refrain from tying your Daffodil leaves in knots to neaten their appearance, also avoid folding them over and securing with rubber bands. If the bulbs leaves are naturally allowed to die back then they will take in the energy for next years flowering. I would also recommend nipping off the spent flower heads on bulbs once flowering is finished, this will prevent the bulb using vital energy for seed production instead using all that energy to bulk up its food store for next season.
Don’t forget to feed
The final tip for blooming bulbs next spring is to feed your bulbs, this is especially important if you have a hungry soil. Apply a foliar feed to the fully emerged leaves before the blooms start to form. Choose a general purpose purpose liquid feed.I would also advise you to feed your bulbs just as the blooms have faded with a granular bulb fertiliser applied around the bulbs base. This is the most important feed they will receive. Ensure this feed has a higher potassium or potash content than nitrogen content. Apply according to the manufacturers instructions and heed safety warnings.
Related Blogs
Apr
12
Posted under
Flower bulb care
This article explains a few things about planting bulbs, and if you’re interested, then this is worth reading, because you can never tell what you don’t know.
How can you put a limit on learning more? The next section may contain that one little bit of wisdom that changes everything.
There are many varieties of flowering plants, but few offer all the advantages of bulb plants. For starters, bulbs are generally inexpensive to buy, and they can be purchased through the mail or over the internet, since they are durable and easy to ship.
Bulbs are also beautiful, and some of the most beloved flowers in the garden, such as hyacinths, daffodils and of course tulips, are bulb plants. In addition, many bulbs can remain in the ground through the winter and bloom the next year.
Even though bulbs are among the hardiest of all plants, it is important to exercise caution when planting them, and to buy only the best and most healthy bulbs. By choosing the healthiest bulbs, it will be easy to create a beautiful and healthy garden year after year.
When shopping for bulbs, it is important to look for the firmest, plumpest bulbs you can find. A good, high quality bulb will seem surprisingly heavy for its size. It is important to avoid bulbs that are too soft, since softness is often a sign of bulb rot. In addition, bulbs that are very light in weight, or that appear shriveled or cracked, should be rejected. These bulbs may have lost too much of their moisture to bloom in the garden.
The best blooms are generally provided by the largest bulbs. For instance, the largest daffodil bulbs will generally provide the biggest daffodils, and the biggest tulip bulbs will produce the largest tulips. Since bulbs bloom again and again, however, a most cost effective approach for the patient gardener is to buy small bulbs and allow them to grow over time. Each bloom will be larger than the last, and letting your own small bulbs grow can be a real treat for the gardener.
After you have bought the best bulbs you can find, it is important to exercise care when planting them. In order to thrive and grow, bulbs should be provided with a good well drained flower bed. If you have a poor draining soil, you may want to plant them on a slope or used a raised bed for better drainage.
Many people like to prepare an entire bed only for bulbs, while others prefer to intersperse their bulbs with other kinds of plants. Either approach can be great, but it is important to do the planting properly. To plant an entire bed of bulbs, you should first remove weeds and other vegetation from the bed. You should then spread between one and three inches of organic matter over the soil, then put down a small amount of a high quality fertilizer. When using fertilizer, it is important to follow the instructions on the package. After you have tilled and raked the soil, it is time to plant the bulbs.
Most bulbs should be planted three times as deep as the bulb is wide, so the average two inch wide bulb should be planted to a depth of about six inches. In sandy soils or hot climates, the bulbs should be planted a little bit deeper, while in heavy soil they should be planted a bit shallower. While it is fine to space bulbs close together, the more closely spaced the bulbs the more need there will be to divide them in a few years.
Using a bulb planter is a great idea when planting bulbs. If you do not have a bulb planter handy, you can use a garden trowel to dig the holes. Each hole should be dug a few inches deeper than needed, and a tablespoon of fertilizer should be placed in the base of each hole. The fertilizer should then be covered with a thin layer of soil, on top of which the bulb should be placed. The rest of the hole should then be filled with soil.
After planting the bulbs, you should be sure to water the bed thoroughly in order to get them off to a good start. Proper moisture at the start will allow them to establish a healthy root system.
Is there really any information about planting bulbs that is nonessential? We all see things from different angles, so something relatively insignificant to one may be crucial to another.
Related Blogs
