SPRING FLOWERS

Compiled by Guru Chakravarty, New Jersey

The Tulip Festival in Srinagar is a grand affair of natural beauty where flower beds are scattered upon several terraces. Your trip to Kashmir in April 2022 would not be considered complete without visiting Asia’s most extensive Tulip Garden. This magnificent festival in Srinagar is celebrated every year with full fervor and joy. The Floriculture Department organizers announced plans to plant 1.5 million tulip bulbs of 62 varieties in 2022 Tulip Garden. The picturesque garden sprawls over 30 hectares. In short, the Tulip Festival in 2022 will take your breath away!

Here is an assortment of spring flowers that are commonly grown at homes here in New Jersey.

Petunias are one of the most popular annual flowering plants in the spring. They are easy to grow and come in a kaleidoscope of different colors and sizes. Petunias can be grown in hanging smaller than petunias, but no less spectacular, and just as attractive to the hummingbirds. Calibrachoa require eight hours of sunlight per day and well drained growing media. They generally grow best baskets, planters or garden beds, and with the right care they will continue to bloom throughout the summer and into the fall. As a bonus, hummingbirds will frequently visit petunias to drink nectar from their trumpet shaped flowers.

Calibrachoa is a relative of petunia that looks similar but is actually a different species. They are in a hanging basket or a planter and they do not require dead heading.

Fuchsia is another excellent flowering plant for hanging baskets. There are approximately 100 different species of fuchsia, most of which are native can be 3 to 4 inches across. These woody vines are frost sensitive, so it is best to grow mandevilla in containers if you are planning to bring them in for the winter. The plants can also be grown in the ground and treated as annuals once the weather to Mexico and Central and South America, though some species are also native to the Caribbean, New Zealand and Tahiti.

Canna is a tropical plant with large leaves and magnificent clusters of red, pink, yellow or orange flowers that attract hummingbirds and bumblebees. They have continued to be a popular choice since the Victorian era, where they were used as the focal point of flower beds. Some varieties of cannas can reach heights of 5 feet or more, though there are also dwarf varieties that are well-suited for containers

Mandevilla are also popular tropical plants that produce showy trumpet shaped flowers that has warmed up. Mandevilla will benefit from having a trellis to climb on and the flowers are sure to bring hummingbirds to your yard throughout the summer.

Reference:

1. William Erikson of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent for Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Monmouth County

2. Courier News

3. Internet