Hilltop Flower Display

Colorado is notorious for its fluctuating weather patterns and unpredictable winter weather making it seem impossible to create stunning spring color displays except for at this Hilltop residence. A careful selection of proper bulbs and pansies highlight the front beds creating a beautiful display of color in late April while a wildflower mix of a contrasting varieties establish a succession of color throughout the backyard beds.
Accentuating the flowering crabapples surrounding the front entryway, Darwin Hybrid “Ivory Floradale” and “Pink Impression” tulips stand tall combined with a variety of deep purple, periwinkle blue and primrose yellow pansies. The Darwin type tulips are notorious for sturdy stems and brilliantly huge bloom sizes that instantly draw the eye into the entry of the home. Deep pink hues from the overhanging crabapple branches perfectly match the color depth from the “Pink Impression” tulips.

Traveling into the backyard, Redbud clumps are decorated with soft pink blossoms surrounded by a succession of different cultivar bulbs and pansies. We have combined deep blue muscari, early blooming crocus, and a mix of mid-season and late tulips to create a more natural, unstructured feel, different from the front yard. Mid season Darwin Hybrid Tulips in varying shades of pink and ivory are combined with soft double “Angelique” tulips and deep “Bleu Aimable” bulbs while the blue muscari and early crocus are gathered in clumps surrounding the pansies.

These colorful displays received no additional water throughout the winter season and into the spring. Both the tulips and the pansies are incredibly drought tolerant making them a key choice with Colorado’s erratic weather. Providing a balanced nutrient supplement of organic bonemeal while planting the bulbs and an application of slow release fertilizer for the pansies in the fall and spring created a masterpiece of drought resistant, no maintenance color early in the season that will soon be followed by a colorful display of assorted perennials and annuals.

Overall, the proper species selection and planting location proved to be key in creating an extraordinary display of color in the early spring.