I wouldn’t really describe myself as a ‘pink’ person but I do love very deep fuchsia pink. Last year I started planting a small area of the garden with just this colour, the idea being that there would be something flowering in that colour for most of the year.
If you’ve seen any of my previous posts over the last few months you will have seen Anemone Sylphide. I am thrilled with the colour and how long it has flowered; it is still producing new blooms now and it began on January 15th.
Anemone Sylphide
Last spring I saw two tulips that caught my eye on other blogs. Hillwards showed Tulip Barcelona, just the colour I wanted and available from my supplier; I have not been disappointed by its silky loveliness. Wife, Mother Gardener raved about the little tulip Persian Pearl (she has shown it a couple of times this year too. I think it must like her cooler conditions better than mine because mine was over in about a week, but as it is a species type it should at least bulk up for next year and will hopefully make a better impression.
Tulip Barcelona
T. Barcelona, I like the way the petals curve out in a most elegant way
The petals look like silk
The first tulip opens in 2013 – T. Persian Pearl
Tulip Persian Pearl
I included Hyacinth Miss Saigon, but again this opened and finished very quickly so the jury is out as to whether I would plant others, it will depend on its performance next year. Little Gem irises were pretty but their colour didn’t live up to their description but they did flower for a long time so I enjoyed having them in the garden.
Hyacinth Miss Saigon
I also bought Tulip Purple Dream not expecting it to be a similar colour. This tulip is indeed a dream I’ve never seen a tulip with a larger flower, the images don’t do it justice. It was very tall too, although this could be because it was planted with Cerinthe all around it so it might just have been reaching for the light. I hadn’t planted it in the same bed as the others but I might be tempted into buying some this autumn (don’t think about it yet) to give a different form in the bed.
T. Purple Dream
T. Purple Dream with the light behind its petals, this is a new favourite
Wide open showing a white throat T. Purple Dream
The same applies to T. Double Dazzle planted in autumn 2010 in the large island; I think it would look great with the other tulips.
T. Double Dazzle
T. Double Dazzle looks great with Euphorbia rigida
Sadly the tulips have all finished now but I’ll post about some of the others that were especially beautiful this year and the plants that associated well with them.
Creating my own garden of the Hesperides 
Nice deep colors…my tulips barely flowered although if the deer stay away I may get a few more…
What a shame, I think my tulips were the best they have ever been, although they are all over now. Christina
These pinks are beautiful and I love the idea of having a special colour for part of the garden.
I’m enjoying finding plants to flower throughout the year that are this strong pink. Christina
That is a lovely pink you have found, your bed will look lovely through the year, will look forward to seeing what else you find in that lovely colour
Love them all Christina! It’s a shame they don’t last longer. We’ve had a good mix of warm and cooler days, so ours are holding up well this year.
These must be fun to experiment with. I really like your T. Purple Dream, Christina. Also, it’s nice to see your Anemone still going strong. My Anemone order finally arrived several weeks ago but barely 3 of 20 are showing any sign of growing. Susie
What type of Anemone were they. Sometimes they say to soak the corms overnight. I didn’t with the pink ones but did with the mixed colours; I couldn’t see ay noticable difference. Christina
They are Anemone coronaria de Caen ‘The Bride’ and ‘Mr. Fokker’ . I soaked them about 4 hours. Maybe they will still come up. Anyway, I’ve enjoyed getting to see yours!
I planted mine in Autumn, they are about to go into summer dormancy so maybe yours will come up in late autumn. Christina
Thanks Christina!
Nice tulips! I’m not crazy about pink but I like the purple pink or dusty pink you can find on Eupatoriums.
Your blooms are beautiful and the color is amazing.
Christina you have some nice purple pinks there, wierd your tulips are over and mine haven’t begun, Frances
Once things begin flowering here, it is a rush for everything to flower. The first year it was so wierd, it seemed like the Chelsea flower show or something, where everything has been forced to flower early! Christina
My color theme areas are some of my best gardens. Love all the pink tulips. Now that the deer are all fenced out I could go back to growing them.
I like the idea of keeping this area the same colour throughout the seasons, in other areas the colours change from one season to the next although that can be more difficult when plants flower a little off season! Christina
I love the combination of ‘Purple Dream’ and cerinthe, that works really well. I really must sow some cerinthe for next year, it would probably happily self seed here – it never did in my previous garden.
All my cerinthe is self seeded, it grows like a weed! I always pull it all out when the leaves go yellow but it has always made lots of seed, luckily the seed is mature very quickly. Christina
Gorgeous colours. I think tone is so important. I don’t like candy coloured pinks or quite a few yellows but love warmer tones of both colours. Do you mind me asking where you buy your tulips from? Had lots of problems with mine this year.
I agree with you about candy pinks, in a way this is hardly a pink at all, more like magenta. I buy all my bulbs from Peter Nyssen. I find most things good especially his tulips. you might have had trouble because of your very wet winter (although it was quite wet here this year). He also has reasonable prices and ships to me in Italy and doesn’t charge more than is reasonable for P&P Christina
Well planning a whole pink area of the garden is quite brave for a non pink person! I loved your tulip Purple Dream, I love all the lily flowered tulips (I think they call so the pointy petalled ones, right?). Cerinthe is some plant I’d like to try in my garden too, I can’t find it anywhere here, though.
What else have you got for us in your pink corner? 😉
I don’t really think the colour is ‘pink’, it is too strong a colour for that but I couldn’t think what else to call it! Cerinthe is, I think, native here in Italy. I grew it from seed which is the best way. I can send you some seed when they are ready (just sprinke them about) or if you’re coming to visit anytime I’ll give you some plants. Christina
I’d like to! Let’s see if I could manage a visit sooner or later…
Perfect, and I’ll visit you when all your grasses are looking wonderful. Christina
Oh that would be great!
Wouldn’t describe my manly self as a pink person either but appreciate these tones. Love it when bloggers help each other out with suggestions. ‘Persian Pearl’ is one of my favorites. Keep up the good work.
Blessings,
Patrick
Thanks Patrick, much appreciated. Christina
I see why you love Tulip Barcelona! It’s a wonderful shade of pink, perfect for spring. I’m afraid tulips must be treated as expensive annuals here. Very few repeat successfully.
I wouldn’t describe myself as a ‘pink person’ either but it has to be said that you just can’t beat a good pink colour! I love it in the garden actually and I don’t think we see it enough nowadays. The more I look at your photos the more I just love it! 🙂
Thanks Anna, I wouldn’t be without it either, also in softer English light paler pinks also look lovely. Christina
Pink has ambushed me in our garden too! I’m glad that Barcelona are doing well for you – I planted last year’s bulbs out into the ground in the autumn, and they have come up tall and beautiful again despite the wet dismal winter – though with strong winds they have little chance to relax their petals as yours have.
Thank you for the recommendation of ‘Barcelona’, it has a beautiful form as well as a lovely silky sheen. I feel that this is partly what blogging is about, being able to see plants in a garden context and find out how they actually grow. Thank you. Christina