YOU CAN COUNT ON Eranthis hyemalis, or winter aconite, for a couple of things: to be a pioneer each spring, blooming extra-early even among the early bulbs, and to provoke consternation and also conversation among gardeners who planted them but got nothing in return.
Phrases like “slow to establish” are heard echoing about now in still-cold northern gardens, and on blogs like Kathy Purdy’s Cold Climate Gardening, where she posted about soil pH and its effect on winter aconites, as Eranthis are commonly called.
From my own experiment, I’d add a couple of thoughts: My best success has come under deciduous trees and shrubs where you aren’t in there rooting around a lot and disturbing them, and I think this is the case with many self-sowns. If you clean up too vigorously or stomp around too often, you’ll kill off the next generation of seedlings before they have a chance to settle in. Plant in early fall, when the tubers are fresh and not dried-out (even then soak beforehand), burying them an inch deep and several inches apart.
For those (including some of Kathy’s commenters) who fear that we Americans can’t ever have the sheets of Eranthis that English gardeners talk about so nonchalantly, take heart. A March visit to the Wild Garden at Wave Hill, the exceptional public landscape in New York City, will prove otherwise.
This is one I have yet to try but it is now on the list. Anything that blooms early is a welcome addition to the bleakness of a slow spring.
Ah! THE LIST. I know it well…mine is pages long, always something new to desire. Eranthis will test your patience, but is well worth it. Welcome to A Way to Garden, by the way.
M.
I have Snowdrops, but I haven’t tried these yet. I will also add them to my list along with Hellebores. Great photo – thank you!
Elaine,
They bloom around the same time as the snowdrops, and you will love them. And Hellebores…wonderful (plus like the Eranthis they self-slow, though not true to color–lots of variations, but nice to have the extras anyhow to move around). Thanks for visiting A Way to Garden.
M.
I think you are right about not disturbing them. Certainly the ones I planted in high school were left alone. But others I planted never. came. up. EVER. And they grow best in Barbee’s garden where her predecessor threw them out. One of those head-scratching plants. I will take every bit of information, scientific or anecdotal, and give it a try when it comes to these little plants. And I’m thankful I have them blooming in my garden this year.
Kathy,
Welcome to A Way to Garden. This year, my Eranthis colony made more progress, by the way, and so I suppose there is now a patch of perhaps 150 square feet, with three new little colonies sprouting in other areas. And I was thrilled to also see that I have finally gotten a bit of the solid dark blue glory-of-the-snow, Chionodoxa sardensis, going. Usually even when it’s listed in catalogs you end up with the pale-blue one with the white center, C. luciliae (aka forbesii). So I am noting 2008 as a year of major minor-bulb progress. Yippee.
Margaret
Erantis (the common Danish name) and snowdrops were sometimes blooming (during milder Danish winters) on my birthday February 10 and as I grew up – and even more later on in life – I just loved those early bloomers. My mom always told me that if I wanted to sow eranthis, I should sow them under a hedge or a similar spot where they could be left totally undisturbed.
I think your mother is just right, Salix…put the seeds (or tubers) where they can have their way, free from lots of disturbing traffic of tools or feet or hands. See you soon again.
These grow in my front beds under the azaela et al. They thrill me each year because they bloom just when I have grown weary of winter and fear that spring is too far off. This year they came up through the snow to say hello; always a welcome surprise. They’ve now spread to other parts of the garden and are a delight this time of year. I much prefer them to the snow drops that compete for attention. Love your website BTW!
Welcome, Molly. Lucky you; I love these little flowers, too. See you soon again.
margaret, I love your site. I have been going thru it in the last couple of days and find it very informative. Yes, Eranthis is beautiful. I will also put it on my list… Have never seen it before. This is part of the wonder of nature and it’s never ending surprises!
Welcome, Patricia. Be patient once you get the Eranthis, and be sure to buy fresh and properly stored bulbs from a good supplier (not off the shelves in the garden center where it may dry out before you buy it). Also put it in a spot where you will not rake or dig and so it can just settle in. See you soon again.