Tips on planning tulip beds

Tulip planting is impossibly bipolar. It's split between spring and fall making the span between ordering, planting and flowering at least seven months apart. What inspires us in early spring as these magnificent plants bloom is often a faded memory by the time fall bulb planting season rolls around. And when you begin to think about them for late summer catalog shopping, the choices become overwhelming.

This year, don't just admire the tulips; take a more active role in deciding what you like. Try to really focus on tulip gardens this spring and figure out what makes one more appealing than another. Seeing particular combinations in the flesh rather than through books or catalog photos can take the guess work out of deciding if this will work for you next year.

The best way to record what you see today is to keep a small digital camera in your purse that you can use for snapshots. You'll return to these photos time and again, blowing them up on your computer screen to study the colors at summer bulb ordering time. Photos show you layout and masses too. Are they rigid forms or irregular drifts? Are the color masses all the same size or do they vary with the hue? These little details are important, and a photo reveals them in perfect reproduction forever.

Whenever you're capturing a public tulip bed, look around for the labels or signs that indicate what varieties are used. Take a shot that includes the signs. Even if it's not visible in the view finder, you can blow up the image on your computer to read the varietals names clearly. That way you can go straight to the catalogs and order the exact same varieties without question.

A less exact option is to keep a little notebook with you at all times to record those gardens or combinations that knock your socks off. So how do you record what you see on paper? One way is to simply make a list of the colors used. For example, you might find a mixed bed that's particularly appealing with black, magenta pink and white tulips. In this case, try to be as specific as you can with the descriptions of the colors even if it takes a few words to describe an unusual hue.

Another way to record tulip design is to assess colors used together in larger masses. Sometimes these larger combinations are coordinated with an overall scheme, such as cool colors. A Holland garden room featured undulating strips of blue muscari woven through linear masses of lavender, white and pink tulips. A unique bed in this mix featured a red candy striped white tulip for interest. That's a detail you don't want to miss!

Another thing to jot down in your travels is how home gardeners or parks have combined tulips with other perennials. These longer lived plants keep the bed attractive after the tulips have faded.

Some great combinations feature perennials that bloom in tandem with the tulips. This is tough to work out on your own, but when you see it work in your local community you know exactly what pairs well. For example, a beautiful haze of sky blue forget-me-nots is the perfect soft complement for white tulips. Tulips in peach and red work surprisingly well with bleeding hearts and dwarf white spiraea.

Most Americans have no idea how many hundreds of tulip varieties are available today. Different heights, season of bloom, every color of the rainbow, and a huge range of flower shapes make selection a real challenge. Rather than give in to sensory overload, just refer back to your little black book or a computer file to rekindle exactly what curled your toes in those early days of spring.

(Maureen Gilmer is a horticulturist and host of "Weekend Gardening" on DIY Network. Contact her at her Web site www.moplants.com or visit www.diynetwork.com.)