Flowers and Fruit Trees

Hi Everyone
I have finally got sick of looking out at a bare backyard so this year I have went berserk and brought roses & fruit trees. Now what I'm wondering is.. is it ok to plant bulbs like daffodils & jonquils under the fruit trees? I have apricot, necterine, plum, peach as well as mandarin & soon lemon trees.
Thanks in advance
Jane

Absolutely! Daffodils are great companions for apple trees. I'll try for some photos today. Mine have huge clumps at their feet. The daffs get the sun in winter when they need it, and the shelter in Summer, from the leaves, to keep the bulbs cool and fairly dry (because the tree guzzles all the water). They very much enjoy the leaf litter dropped by the trees.
I have put rings of tall growing, small flowered daffodils round my mums standard Hybrid T roses I transplanted here from her house before we sold it last year (after she passed away). The daffs were from her garden and I will add blue anemones next year, to complete the picture just as it was in her front garden. Sort of a memorial to her & Dad who died 4 years ago. I had to replace "Peace" - hers was an old gnarled specimen and didn't make it through the dry summer. The others are going well despite some persistant root stock canes.
I should mention too, if you drive through Ballarat at this time of year - stright down Sturt Street well past the shopping precinct, you will see beds of daffodils in bloom, and no sign of the roses that are planted in the exact same spot. If you drive through again in Autumn, you will see a wonderful display of roses in these beds, and no sign that there are daffodils planted heavily underneath them.

Cheers, Jan

I'll look out for that - we'll be in Ballarat in September for a couple of days.

What days and are you planning on visiting me? I'm in Creswick 20 minutes north :-)

https://cosmicconnection.forumotion.net/gallery/Personal-album-of-siri/apples-and-daffs-pic_43.htm

Still haven't worked out how to post the pic but here's a link to my gallery. Will put some more in, but having lunch and going saturday shopping now.
Cheers, Jan

You can either highlight the link text of each individual picture and copy and paste it into the body of your message. I've been using a combination of that and thumbnails from photobucket.

What days and are you planning on visiting me? I'm in Creswick 20 minutes north :-)

We'll be there Monday 14th Sept. all day Tuesday and will do the mining thing, leaving Wednesday morning. We'll be there a couple of days on the way back in October too. Might dump the van at the CP and head your way Monday afternoon, if that's alright or you are not at work. Would love to meet and see your garden. If that's not suitable, we might make it on the return leg.

Thnks for the help I thought I could but wasn't too sure. I have planted out around my weeping cherries & apricot snap dragons, daisy & a cottage mix? & I have over 100 bulbs ordered through garden express for planting next year & have also just brought from their latest catalogue snowflakes, salvia phyllis fancy & a mixed bouganvillea. The backyard should look much better once everything starts flowering

I can be home on the Monday if I know you are coming. I work from home, and make my own work times. At this time of year, I try and work early in the morning and late evenings, or when it's raining and garden in between. I will send you my phone number in a PM.
Cheers, Jan

I have planted out around my weeping cherries & apricot snap dragons, daisy & a cottage mix? & I have over 100 bulbs ordered through garden express for planting next year & have also just brought from their latest catalogue snowflakes, salvia phyllis fancy & a mixed bouganvillea. The backyard should look much better once everything starts flowering

Sound lovely. I'm in favour of informal plantings and naturalising like this will give you colour and form just about all year. I'll be digging up some bulbs at the end of the season and will be offering them on TasV's site in due course.

Thanks I've not had a whole lot of gardening experience though I have learnt a fair bit. Heres a couple of photos taken this winter of the garden

Your weeping trees will be lovely, but I suggest you extend the mulched area to several metres. Grass can take an enormous amount of nourishment away from trees and roses, and your bulbs will appreciate the mulch to.
When we first moved here, we had an old pear tree that only had small leaves, and tiny fruits. When I incorporated it into this garden:




(it's actually in the garden immediately to the right, you can see a few twigs at the top of the picture)
It became very healthy, and now produces medium sized fruit for eating and bottling, larger leaves, and lots of new growth.

Initially this area looked like yours, but I got so tired of trying to manoever the mower around the trees, shrubs (viburnums) and roses, so I mowed it close, got piles of newspaper and straw, and sheet mulched the area into 4 long beds. The arbor came much later as i could afford it. The area is planted out with siberian and species iris, not visible at present. Having the mulch down gave the worms a chance to work the soil for me, and after about 18 months it was friable enough to plant irises into.

The first year after mulching you need to be vigilant with weeds and top up the mulch every 6 months or so. This year (about 4 years on) there has only been a few persistant dandelions & a couple of dock. This area comes alive in Spring through to late Autumn.

Cheers, Jan

Jan, to insert pictures copy the BB code of the picture - but don't use the copy thing that comes up when you highlight it - it doesn't work properly. Use the menu copy at the top of your page and paste that in to the text area. Alternatively, if you prefer to use photobucket, just copy the code from there.

Linda

Thanks Blossom - I will try that. I am fairly technologically inept. I prefer not to use photobucket.
Thanks for putting them in properly for me. I was wondering how that was happening. At least I think I have tackled the phobia of posting photos on this forum. I can send you lots of nice photos now :-)
Cheers, Jan

The advantage of using the personal gallery here is that it is not accessible by the public, so there's no risk of your photo's getting pinched. Also you can delete them whenever you want to. Downside is that some of the codes are bit messy but if you remember to use the BB Code for pictures and use the copy in the main menu and not the automatic, they paste OK. I've tried to install the forum to give members control, not me. That's why I don't have moderators.

It was a quick mulch job for the weepies it had been windy when they were planted & I just mulched around the base to try & stop them drying out too much with the wind. I can see now that I'm really going to have to get the belts changed on the ride on sooner rather than later. My scottish highland cows have already been in once & mowed the bottom half, thank goodness they respect electric fences

You've got scottish highland cows? Drool ......they're so cute ...... (Ok - I'll go away now)

Yes I have highland cattle for just over 12 months & have found that they are gentle & very easy to handle despite them having huge horns. Here is a link to our site www.jandenrene.com to see the highlands follow the link to Loch Valley Fold or visit this one http://www.highlandcattleworld.com/folds/Australia/Loch_valley.html
Jane

Bit hairier than a Wagyu or Brahman LOL

That is true