Peeking Tulips

Guess what greeted me last Friday as I came home? These:



Yup, my tulips are finally poking out of the ground!! I realize it’s probably late, my parents are saying their’s are 4 inches tall, but I think it’s because of the lack of sunlight we get in our backyard.

Anyway, I’m super thrilled, because I was really afraid they wouldn’t grow at all, that I had waited too long to plant them last fall. It was end of November that I did so. The ground was of course not frozen yet; we got a very short winter this year.

This is our little plot of soil in our backyard. I know it’s not super great, but better than what we had at our last place, and for a apartment it’s not bad.



So what I did last fall was just dig a trench about 4-6 inches deep.





I had LOTS of bulbs, as you can see. Some seemed rather rotten, though...



I just lined them up in the trench, pointy side up...



...and then I buried them. (that's half way buried btw) I don't know if I buried them a little too deep and that's why they took their time sprouting... But it might also have prevented them from being dug up by the pesky resident squirrels we got around. They seem to dig only an inch then get tired. And they never dig right where the tulips are either...



Here’s the story of how I got those bulbs for free. Every year in Ottawa (my home town), there’s the Tulip Festival in May. They plant thousands of tulips. It’s kinda sad I’ve never actually went to see them, I really should.


source: Ottawa Tulip Festival, photo by Frank Scheme


source: Ottawa Tulip Festival, photo by Frank Scheme

After every festival, they dig up the bulbs and dispose of them :( Somehow, our neighbor manages to get ahold of them, and gives them a second home. That is how I came to have these bulbs.

I’ve got 3 rows on my plot, I know you can’t really tell, but yeah, there are.



Only thing is I was scared they had gotten too humid and had rotten. I’m sure they won’t all bloom, but most of them should.

I have no idea what color they will be. Ready to be surprised with me later in the season?! I’ll post pictures when they bloom.

There's only 5 out right now, I'm hoping to see more soon, but with -5 degree C weather (24 degree F) here this morning I dunno when that will be really. Canadian weather is such a tease; 25 degree C last week (77F), and now -5C (24F). Only in Canada people, only in Canada... (or are there parts of US that are crazy like that?!)





One got crushed, as in stepped on, most likely by me or my bike. Must put up some sort of barrier or fence around.



Are you excited to see your tulips bloom?! How tall are they now if you have some?

Thanks for reading, have a great week everyone!



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