Sheets of Crocus
Specifically Crocus tommasinianus, the hardy, early flowering species from Eastern Europe and the Balkans. Along with their snowdrop collections, this is one of the harbingers of spring at The Garden House, occupying swathes of ground in both the bulb meadow and acer glade and, with suitable encouragement from the garden team, in other areas within the garden
February sunshine brings them out in full glory, both in the sunnier Bulb Meadow....
...and the shadier Acer Glade.
Despite recieving the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit (AGM) the species can also be considered a bit of a weed due to it's ability to naturalise in the semi shaded, edge of woodland areas that mimic the wild habitat. Beloved of early flying bumble bees, it acts as a nectar source for these and other early insects at a time when there is little else available. Perhaps a little invasiveness is no bad thing.
You may not have the room to encourage such early sheets of colour but it's hardiness and ability to spread by both seed and corm multiplication deserves a place in even a small plot. After all, it doesn't interfere with the summer's growth and adds a splash of colour when colour is most needed.
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