Hyacinths: Muscari armeniacum

description for "Hyacinths: Muscari armeniacum"

Muscari armeniacum bears 6 inch spikes holding deep cobalt-blue, white-rimmed florets. Good for cutting, although most gardeners let the flowers go to seed because the bulbs increase rapidly. A gardener's favorite, these fragrant flowers resemble upside down clusters of grapes. Grape hyacinths thrive and increase rapidly in all but the dampest and shadiest locations. A bulb that you should have in your spring garden, use Muscari to separate tulip plantings, to outline a walkway or to highlight other spring flowering bulbs. Plant bulbs about 3” deep and 3” apart in fall. Flowers emerge in early spring. Keep ground moist during the spring growing season, but reduce watering after foliage begins to die back. Although plants of this species go dormant in summer, they produce new leaves in autumn. Naturalizes well by both bulb offsets and, under favorable growing conditions, self-seeding. No serious insect or disease problems. --edited by dtd siegelgirl

History:

Native to: Western Asia: Iran, Turkey; Caucasus: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia; Southeastern Europe: Bulgaria, Former Yugoslavia, Greece. Provides spectacular drifts of color when massed in open areas, around shrubs, under deciduous trees, in the rock garden or in the border front. Also mixes well with other early blooming bulbs. Popular container plant. Also forces easily for winter bloom.