The first bulbs to flower were the iris reticulata - Gordon.
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Such a gorgeous, velvety, deep purple flower. I love the splashes of golden yellow. Absolutely stunning.
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I bought two packets of crocus which I planted all together in one container. They were supposed to be the variety Advance, a pretty yellow inside coupled with a delicate lilac on the outside. I've looked forward to these flowering all through winter, but have been sorely disappointed with them. No way are these crocuses Advance. Most of them are a plain, deep yellow.
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They're pretty enough, but it's still a bit of a blow when you've been expecting something different.
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Flowering away now are the narcissus - Tete a Tete. Such cheery flowers, they bloom for a good length of time and stand up to the weather, bearing their flowers on short stems.
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I'm now waiting on the daffodils - Professor Einstein to put in an appearance, they're already starting to bud so they shouldn't be long.
Don't forget, if you haven't yet entered my giveaway, you've got until twelve noon on Sunday the 23rd of March 2014 to do so. Just leave a comment on The Cut Flower Patch post.
Disappointing, I know, but it could have been worse - did you read what Sue Garrett wrote about her mis-identified Magnolia tree? :)
ReplyDeleteAt least Wilkinsons responded in a reasonable way. I think yellow Crocus must be generally difficult. I have some which were described simply as "Yellow", but they are exactly like yours, with the purple streaks on the outside.
I did read about Sue's magnolia. I suppose plant labels can easily get mixed up, but you'd expect bulbs in sealed packets to be correctly named. The variety I ended up with are still lovely, just not what I was expecting, which is a shame as I was so looking forward to them blooming.
DeleteGood for you and Wilkos.I must say I grew to love my magnolia in spite of the mistake.
DeleteDo you remember my nectarine that turned out to be a peach? T and M sent me a nectarine to add to the peach.
I remember the mix up with the nectarine that was, in fact, a peach. At least they sent you the correct tree, another company with good customer service. I don't think we mind mistakes, it's how they're handled that counts.
DeleteSorry to hear that the crocuses didn't come up as you hoped! They look pretty though, so do all of your other bulbs. Nice to know that the vendor has done the right thing and apologised though, that is good customer service isn't it. I particularly like the irises!! xx
ReplyDeleteI'm happy with my bulb choices on the whole. I was impressed with Wilkinsons' customer service, there aren't that many companies who care about their customers these days. The irises are a gorgeous colour.
DeleteA great section of bulbs, I particularly like the iris'. The crocus are very pretty - it's a shame it's not what you were expecting though, it can make such a difference.
ReplyDeleteI love the irises, such a gorgeous colour. I find Katharine Hodgkin a bit wishy washy but Gordon have such a depth of colour.
DeleteI'm not that keen on iris but I like those. What a shame about the crocuses, but full marks to Wilkinson's for dealing with your complaint as they did.
ReplyDeleteLovely daffodils. Flighty xx
I really like irises, especially the reticulatas, such charming little plants. I think credit where credit's due where customer service is concerned, it's good to see a company taking a complaint seriously. I do love Tete a Tetes, they always remind me of spring lambs and Easter for some reason.
DeleteSo, so pretty - spring in pots.
ReplyDeleteLove from Mum
xx
These bulbs will be planted in the garden once they've finished flowering. I always buy new bulbs for my containers each year and the old bulbs go on flowering in the border.
DeleteBeautiful irises Jo. Snap when it comes to the crocuses which we both bought from the same source - mine all have the same purple marking as some of yours have. I had forgotten to label mine and have been trying to remember what variety they were supposed to be. Glad that I've read your post. I think that another email will be on its way!
ReplyDeleteOh dear, it sounds like it could be the whole batch which are incorrectly labelled. I don't think I'd have minded so much if I hadn't been so looking forward to such an unusual variety blooming.
DeleteI think our magnolia came from Swillington Nurseries so Sue might have left it a bit late to complain.
ReplyDeleteJust a little too late. It's sad to see all the empty terraces when we now pass, it was such a thriving business, such a shame we haven't got a good local nursery anymore.
DeleteIt is so annoying when that happens isn't it, seems to be quite common here at times. I've had a blue agapanthus that turned out to be white! Good for wilkinsons though.
ReplyDeleteIt is annoying, especially if you've purchased a particular colour plant to fit in with a scheme. I'm pleased with the way Wilkinsons handled my complaint.
DeleteI love your flowers in spite of the unexpected colour. I still have been waiting for my irises to bloom but it looks that they don't want to.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure your irises will bloom when they're ready, there's no rushing these things. They're such lovely flowers, and there's quite a bit of variation in the colours of different varieties. I'd like to try a few more.
DeleteI remember your post when you bought the bulbs, they sounded glorious and I was looking forward to seeing them too. The iris is a beauty, I shall keep an eye out for that one.
ReplyDeleteI thought the colour description of the crocuses was really unusual, that's what attracted me to them so it was really disappointing when they bloomed. The irises have more than made up for them though, I'm very happy with my choice there.
DeleteI love the iris!
ReplyDeleteWilkinsons may have had a mislabelled sack of bulbs. I bought Hyacinths to force for Christmas, I wanted to give some as presents. Having told the recipient they were the deep 'beetroot purple' Hyacinths, they opened to be pale pink! I had bought from a well know flower plant company (SR) and they gave me a full refund - I was one of many who complained. A sack of bulbs from their supplier had been mislabelled.
C x
The irises are gorgeous, aren't they? I think it would be very easy to mislabel plants and bulbs, but Wilkinsons handled the situation extremely well and for that I should give credit where credit's due. I shall see if I can find some more Advance for next year and give them a try again, the variety does sound very pretty.
DeleteYour iris variety has beautiful markings. Shame about the crocuses as anticipation re. the colour of a bloom is part of the fun of choosing something different and unusual from the description on the packet. The wind is getting up strongly today and our regular daffodils are suffering because of their long stalks. We didn't plant any miniatures for this season. They do make a good show don't they?
ReplyDeleteI'm so pleased with the irises, I shall look out for some more next year. The wind has been quite strong over the last couple of days here and it's still very breezy today, my daffodils haven't bloomed yet, lucky I suppose with all the wind about.
DeleteBeautiful irises and love all the spring flowers.Shame you were disappointed with the crocuses but they still look pretty. Great the company has a good customer policy, you wouldn't mind using them again.
ReplyDeleteI think the irises have been the stars of the show this year, I'm really pleased with the variety Gordon. I think you can tell a lot about a company by their customer service and Wilkinsons didn't let me down. I wasn't really complaining, I just wanted to let them know that the bulbs had been labelled incorrectly, but their good will gesture was greatly appreciated.
DeleteAll the bulbs are gorgeous. The blue iris are very striking, fab really. A triumph even.
ReplyDeleteThe iris are a great success, I shall definitely grow this variety again.
DeleteMorning Jo, sorry to leave a message on your blog rather than send you a private email but I can't find your address.
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to let you know you were 'mentioned in despatches' at Bag End :}
Thursday's post (20th) http://theviewfrombagend.blogspot.com/
I shall pop across shortly to have a read. It's a glorious day today, the sun's shining and it's beautiful out.
DeleteWhat gorgeous Iris, they are a lovely colour. I have to say the crocus look great too, great that you received the voucher!!!xxx
ReplyDeleteThe crocus were lovely, I was just a little disappointed that they weren't what I was expecting. I'll try again this year.
DeleteSpring bulbs are always such a welcome sight aren't they!!
ReplyDeleteThey are. The daffodils I planted in a container are just starting to flower now, though the ones planted in the ground have been blooming for a while.
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