Carefree bulbs

Jane McGary janemcgary@earthlink.net
Sat, 03 May 2008 04:20:21 PDT
I live in the Pacific Northwest, but at 1600 feet elevation near Mount 
Hood, with well-drained mineral soil and about 45 inches of rain per year, 
usually none of it in the summer. Only part of my garden is irrigated 
during the dry season. Usual winter lows in the mid-teens F.

Here are the bulbs that have naturalized in the garden to the extent of 
self-sowing or appearing to be so well settled that, should I abandon the 
garden, they would survive until smothered by native vegetation:

Crocus tommasinianus, C. speciosus, C. vernus ssp. vernus and ssp. 
albiflorus, C. pulchellus (!), C. kotschyanus, C. ochroleucus (!!)
Dichelostemma ida-maia
Triteleia peduncularis, T. laxa
Colchicum: all the larger hybrids, and a few small ones, notably C. procurrens
Sternbergia lutea
Puschkinia scilloides
Chionodoxa luciliae (blue and white forms), C. siehei, C. sardensis
Hyacinthoides non-scripta
Asphodelus albus
Paradisea lusitanica
Anthericum liliago
Anemone nemorosa, A. blanda, A. ranunculoides
Iris reticulata
Narcissus, all the hardy hybrids and, in the rock garden, N. rupicola, N. 
calcicola, N. triandrus
Camassia quamash, C. leichtlinii, C. cusickii
Cyclamen hederifolium, C. coum, C. repandum, C. pseudibericum
Nectaroscordum siculum
Allium membranaceum, A. unifolium, A. moly, A. neapolitanum
Notholirion thomsonianum
Cardiocrinum giganteum
Veratrum californicum, Disporum smithii, Trillium ovatum, Dicentra formosa, 
Smilacina (Maianthemum) racemosum, S. stellata, and Maianthemum dilatatum 
are native to the site.
Convallaria majalis
Galanthus nivalis, G. plicatus, G. 'Atkinsii', G. fosteri

In addition, many of the species Paeonia that are well established have 
self-sown a little, even P. lutea with its huge seeds, which must be moved 
around by squirrels.
Jane McGary




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