Bulbs

Freesia is a great spring flower bulb for Sunnyvale gardens. It smells great and has a range of colors: white, red, purple. It naturalizes so you get plenty of flowers forever. It is drought tolerant. https://www.sunnyvalegarden.com/flowers/freesia/

Ranunculus (Ranunculus spp.) adds bright color to the flower garden or bulb border from late winter to early summer. Tender, tuberous perennials, ranunculus grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7 through 9, where they reach a height of 10-to-24 inches tall. Used for bedding and cut flowers, ranunculus is a member of the buttercup family. Pompom-like flowers …

Sparaxis, also known as wandflower or harlequin flower, are colorful members of the iris family with open star-shaped white, orange, lavender, yellow or pink flowers often centered with contrasting symmetrical patterns. The plants are ideal for Sunnyvale gardens as they are hardy to USDA zones 9 through 11 and in zones 7 and 8 with winter protection. In warm-winter zones, …

Daffodils are one of the first signs of spring. Daffodil, (Narcissus pseudonarcissus), also called common daffodil or trumpet narcissus, bulb-forming plant in the amaryllis family, widely cultivated for its trumpetlike flowers. Daffodils are native to northern Europe and are grown in Daffodils naturalize so they reliably come back every spring, often with more bulbs. Don’t eat the daffodils. All parts of …

The Iceland Poppy is a boreal flowering plant. It is native to subpolar regions of Europe, Asia and North America, and the mountains of Central Asia, but not in Iceland!!!   Iceland poppies are hardy but short-lived perennials, often grown as biennials, that yield large, papery, bowl-shaped, lightly fragrant flowers supported by hairy, one foot, curved stems among feathery blue-green …

Hymenocallis is a wonderful genus of bulbous amaryllis…native mostly to the US, Mexico, and Central America. Hymenocallis (spider lilies) are an easy-to-grow moisture-lover that are a reliable perennial wildflower in the garden. Spider lilies are a tough, low maintenance plant which makes it perfect for rain gardens. In the wild many Hymenocallis (spider lilies) often grow in or near water …

“Queen Fabiola” brodiaea (Brodiaea laxa “Queen Fabiola”) is commonly known as the triplet lily or wild hyacinth. It is also known as Ithuriel’s Spear. This perennial bulb is a native wildflower to California, growing wild in evergreen woodlands. It is found in Edgewood Preserve on the San Mateo County peninsula. Grass-like leaves appear first, followed by clusters of light blue …

Siberian squill, grown from a small bulb, is probably the most familiar of the scillas. The plants themselves don’t get much taller than about 6 inches, but they make up for their diminutive size by spreading out and blooming profusely. The tiny bulbs grow and multiple easily and the plants will also self-seed, making scilla a perfect choice for naturalizing.

I have not planted elephant garlic in the front yard in ten years. The plants continue to produce every year. Mostly from child bulbs on the parent. But sometimes from seeds dispersed from the flower heads. This year, I harvested about half of the garlic. Wash off the dirt. Dry for an hour or so. Cut off the foliage about …

Tall Bearded Iris is a great spring flower for Sunnyvale gardens. This is a migrant plant. Some years the iris is in the front yard in the ground; other years the iris is in a container in the back yard. Irises contain the potentially toxic compounds irisin, iridin, or irisine. Symptoms of Poisoning: The gastrointestinal tract may become affected by …