Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Seeing as it’s now autumn, a number of bulbs can be planted in the garden. Here’s a few of them:     Tulip   A fabulous early spring colour. There’s some historical stuff with the Dutch making heaps of money out of often virus-ridden “varieties” (early 1600-s AD) selling them for Fl 3000.00 per bulb (while the average yearly wage of a skilled craftsman was around Fl 300.00) – the bulb bubble burst in 1637 AD. These days they are a bit cheaper and more reliable.  They grow well in South Island with very cool winters – up north they need winter chilling (taking out of the soil and put in fridge for 8 weeks). In mild climates it pays to plant later in the year, in May or June.  But in South Island, planting the bulbs can start in a few weeks; order them now!  Great bulb outlets: Bulbs direct  Garden Post  NZBulbs  Fiesta Bulbs  Hadstock Farm in Springston   Work the soil to 20 cm deep in sunny to semi-shade positions(bulbs prefer well-drained soils).