How to Plant Spring-Blooming Bulbs in 3 Easy Steps

Flowers make life more beautiful. They provide a sea of color in the yard and fresh cut flowers to decorate every room of the house.

Starting a garden for the first time can be a daunting task. Fortunately, bulbs are an easy and economical way to ensure flowers this coming spring—and provide a fool-proof way to jumpstart gardens.

“Bulbs are the gateway to the garden,” comments Hans Langeveld, co-owner of Longfield Gardens. “They provide all the beauty of high-maintenance flowers with little effort.”

GMG's Friday Find: Win A $100 Gift Card for Magical Spring Bulbs!

As the summer season comes to a close, thoughts change from beach outings and garden parties to football and breezy cool nights, and the transformative brassy landscape of fall.

Before letting the summer season fade away, indulge in one more treat: a chance to win a $100 gift card from Longfield Gardens, a retail website for quality bulbs and perennials. To enter the contest just like Longfield Gardens on Facebook, then click to enter to win. With a staggering array of bulbs to choose from, you can enjoy fall bulb planting and anticipate the spring arrival of some of these beauties:

Striped Apeldoorn - Each of these designer mix tulips has its own special pattern of color and stripes, from buttery yellow to deep orange and red.  It blooms midseason and since every blossom is unique they are stunning in a bouquet or left to admire in a group setting in your garden.

Hemisphere - Another tulip with its own special pattern of freckles and stripes and a color range from almost pure white to pink and rose, combined with the hues of  Striped Apeldoorn can create a natural looking sea of color.

Flaming Purissima - This elegant early bloomer tulip has flowers that change day by day, opening wider as they mature. White petals overlaid with blush pink are a great companion for daffodils and hyacinths, and are sturdy and weatherproof for lasting enjoyment.

Moulin Rouge - This color-changing tulip puts on a new show every day.  It opens creamy white with striking raspberry pink accents and as it matures the petals become more colorful until they're bathed with cherry pink, rose and crimson.  And the fragrance of the extra large flowers is extra special.

Shirley - A simple name for a simply stunning tulip, Shirley opens creamy white with lilac-purple stitching around the edges of each petal.  As the blossoms mature, the color slowly spreads until the entire flower is laced with soft purple.  A true favorite for your cutting garden.

Falling in love with bulbs is easy, especially when it's free!  And $100 can buy hundreds of bulbs to plant this fall and enjoy the burst of color and fragrance come spring.  So just hop over to Longfield Gardens Facebook page, like them, and click to enter the contest.  There's only a few days left...good luck and happy bulb planting!

~Peggy
Garden Media Group

GMG's Friday Find: Tulipomania - The Musical about Flower Power!

Today's Friday Find is definitely for those in or visiting the Philadelphia area. It is a show that I would love to see and have been hearing great things about. Who doesn't want to see a musical about real Flower Power...

Tulipomania - The Musical

Before we had the subprime mortgage crisis, Holland had the Tulip bulb bubble. Six strangers in an Amsterdam hash bar recall this seedy story of love, money, and power. From the writer and composer of Café Puttanesca and Baby Case comes a new musical that gets high off our financial lows.

The Critical Acclaim...

The show explores the - very - dark side of obsession and greed, including the pain it causes not just to family fortunes but to families. On the light side, it sure was fun to hear the cast singing lines like "Never underestimate the power of a flower!" Amen!
–Philadelphia Inquirer [Read More]

"Tulipomania has a wonderful cast that sings Michael Ogborn’s innovative score so beautifully. Make the trip to see this bloomingly good new musical.”
–DC Metro Theater Arts [Read More]

"A damned entertaining new musical…glorious and memorable”
–CultureMob [Read More]

"“Very smart and savvy theater people have put this production together. It boasts great music, a knowledgeable and experienced director, first-rate singers, and an A-list design team.”
–CurtainUp

"On the day of the musical’s first preview, Facebook shares sold for $32, and they were just below $29 by the time the orchestra began the overture on opening night. You’ll pay more for a ticket to Tulipomania, and you’ll get your money’s worth.”
–Broad Street Review [Read More]


Book, Music and Lyrics by MICHAEL OGBORN
Directed by TERRENCE J. NOLEN
On the F. Otto Haas Stage
May 24 - July 1, 2012

Run Time
95 minutes (no intermission)

For tickets, call 215.922.1122
Single Tickets 
$29-$45
Groups of 10+
$15-$30

Arden Theatre Company
40 N. 2nd St., Philadelphia, PA 19106
Recommended for 9th grade and older.

Enjoy!
-Karen
Garden Media

Springtime at Biltmore Estate

With warm temps and an amazing array of flowering plants, spring is the optimum season to visit Biltmore's Estate & Gardens in Asheville. You'll see redbud and forsythia in bloom as well the Yellow Magnolia located at the top of the Azalea garden. Plus, the Yoshino Cherry tree with its beautiful flowering blossoms near the Giant Elm. And of course, the tulips have popped and look spectacular! Here are few images taken in the last week that just might take your breath away and get you in the mood for spring!

Enjoy,

Stacey (@staceygmg)
GMG

A Gardener's Paradise!

If you love gardens, get ready for a sensory experience that will knock your socks off!

Biltmore's 26th annual Festival of Flowers, in Asheville, N.C. is the place to be this spring.

It's a garden lover's paradise filled with opportunities to drink in heavenly horticultural beauty.

From April 2nd-May 15th, over 100,000 eye-popping tulips across the estate and floral displays as the entrance and Walled Garden will dazzle! Plus, thousands of tulips and daffodils and hundreds of ornamental allium are displayed at the Walled Garden.

From display tables, Ask a Gardener, and daily seminars on culinary herbs and edible flowers, there's always something fresh to learn and discover.

The Festival's floral theme is 'Flowers from Around the World', inspired by George Vanderbilt's world travels to such exotic locales as Egypt, India, Russia, Asia and Europe. Bold, rich floral colors evoke mysterious lands that continue throughout the Biltmore House and Conservatory.

Keeping with the travel theme, the Winter Garden will contain a compass made of potted plants that surround the center fountain. Even the Conservatory is dressed up with old trunks and luggage.

If this isn't enough, the estate-wide event features daily live music (for every taste), activities for kids, talented artisans, a winery, and Art Show, and of course, the not-to-be-missed Biltmore House!

So get ready to enjoy a little piece of Heaven this spring and rejuvenate your senses at Biltmore's Festival of Flowers. Let us know what swept you away!

Lynne

GMG