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Tulips, as a species, live in southern Europe, north Africa, and Asia. Aren’t we lucky to have them in New Mexico? Tulips love mountainous areas like ours, with temperate climates and long cool springs.
It’s best to plant bulbs about four to eight inches deep (two to three times the height of the bulb) in late summer to fall in soil that drains well. Space bulbs however you like, as long as they won’t touch each other. Root side down, pointed side up, add water, and the efficient little tulip bulb will do the rest. Just be sure to keep them watered during dry spells in the fall. After they finish flowering in spring, cut back the flower stalks and let the leaves to die back naturally.
Little Known Tulip Trivia
Tulips are the only flower that continues to grow in the vase after being cut.
During the reign of Louis XIV, the French became very enamored with the Tulip. Women tucked tulips into their underwear, and as far as they were concerned, the more expensive the tulip, the more important the woman!
The ancient Turks used to brew a love potion from tulips and many cultures consider tulips to be the symbol of perfect love. Thus, the highest price ever paid for a tulip was in Turkey; an early 17th century bill of sale recorded the following transaction for one single Tulip bulb:
• Two loads of wheat
• Four loads of rye
• Four fat oxen
• Eight fat swine
• Twelve fat sheep
• Two hogsheads of wine
• Four barrels of beer
• Two barrels of butter
• 1,000 pounds of cheese
• A marriage bed with linens
• A sizeable wagon to haul it all away
• "And a partridge in a pear tree"
The Tulip
© Ernestine Northover
Tossing turban style contours, with an aloofness as one passes by,
Utilizing every charm it possesses, under a lupine blue cloudless sky,
Like a guardsman, gallantly standing, holding up his noble head high,
In rainbow colors, brilliant and stately, a vision to surely yield a sigh,
Ponder thus upon the regal tulip, it has pure beauty, you cannot deny.
Edible Tulips
Tulips are related to the onion and are edible. The flower petals are often used in salads or to make wine and some in Japan make flour from tulips. (Flower flour?) The petals’ flavor is reminiscent of sweet lettuce, fresh baby peas, or cucumber. Bear in mind, though, that some people may have allergic reactions to tulips, so if touching them causes a rash, numbness or other symptoms, don't eat them! Keep the dish simple when using edible flowers in recipes, and be careful not to add too many other flavors. Flowers have very delicate flavors.
Tulip Tuna
4 servings
12 brightly colored tulips
2 cans albacore tuna packed in water, drained
3 stalks of celery, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Lettuce for garnish
Remove petals from 8 of the tulips, cutting off 1 / 4 inch where petal was attached to eliminate bitter part of flower. Julienne petals; set aside. In large bowl mix together tuna, celery, mayonnaise and pepper to taste. Add julienned petals and toss gently. Cut off the stems and remove the pistils and stamens from the reserved tulips. Place each tulip on a bed of lettuce. Gently spoon the tuna mixture into the tulips. Serve.
adapted from:
Whimsical Gourmet Cuisine
www.tulips-santafe.com
505-989-7340 |
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If your green thumbs have been itching, this is the month you’ve been anticipating! There is a LOT to do this May, in decorative and edible gardens, as well as the lawn.
Now is a good time to plant fall-blooming bulbs, shrubs and vines, trees, and permanent ground covers. You can sow the seeds for frost-tolerant perennials, divide and replant spring-blooming perennials after they bloom, and divide and replant crowded winter- and spring-blooming bulbs after the leaves yellow. You can also plant carrots, lettuce, potatoes, corn, beans, peas and most popular vegetables now, but should wait until mid to late May before planting warmer weather crops like tomatoes, squash, cucumber, pumpkins and peppers.
Once you plant so much in your garden, you’ll need to work to keep them healthy and thriving. Unfortunately, the first flowers you'll see will probably be your weeds, so be sure to eliminate them, roots and all, before they go to seed so you won’t have to fight them so hard later. If a frost or cold weather is predicted, make sure you protect tender plants with mulch, newspapers, or light cloth overnight. Conversely, if the weather is sunny and dry, don't neglect the watering. Most flowers and shrubs need about an inch of water per week to perform well, and newly planted seedlings will die if their roots dry out.
Continue to feed and care for Tulip and Daffodil plants until the foliage has died back naturally, but break off wilting heads. It is best to promptly remove dead flowers from any flowering plant unless you plan to harvest the seeds, because seed production uses up plant energy. Many plants, especially annuals, will bloom more when spent flowers are removed.
You should prune back Forsythias and other early flowering deciduous shrubs when they finish blooming. First cut back a third of the oldest canes to the ground, then cut back a third of branches remaining branches to about a third of their original height. Lilacs should be pruned lightly after they finish blooming in order to remove dead blooms and sucker growths.
May is also a good month to plant both cool-season and warm-season lawns, and is an especially good time to repair your lawn. To fill in bare patches, slightly loosen the surface of the soil and sow a good quality lawn seed over the area evenly. Gently tamp the seed in, and water, keeping the patches moist by covering them with a light mulch of lawn clippings. Again, work to eliminate weeds before they go to seed, and setting your mower for a higher cut to conserve water and help choke out the weeds.
So pull on those garden gloves, work that compost, and have fun! |
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YART has been invaded by Dung Bunnies! In fact, we think they’ve spread to the newspaper and the Taos Home & Garden Expo on April 12 as well! No, we don’t want an exterminator. We love the little varmints, and their dung friends as well.
When Dung Bunnies and artist Susan Bell were recently featured in a story on TV show Off Beat America on HGTV, YART staff immediately recognized that this unique, functional yard art was the epitome of YART itself.
Dung Bunnies are little works of art sculpted entirely from composted horse manure, and they fertilize nearby plants as they slowly decompose over the course of a year. Susan Bell designs Dung Bunnies as functional garden decorations, and they were born out of her desire to do something productive with the copious amount of manure produced by her two horses.
Susan makes about 30 dung sculptures a week. YART is the only Taos retailer to carry these innovative bunnies, cats, dogs, ducks, pigeons and other dung sculptures.
“I'm proud of the dung bunnies because it's one of those stupid ideas you get but you never do, and I actually got it accomplished. And there have been a few slow months here where they've helped pay the rent."
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Dear Soup,
My cats are destroying my houseplants! All I have left are a bunch of chewed up stems in clawed up dirt. What can I do?
Sincerely,
Green Thumb Turning Black
Dear Blackie,
The most entertaining method of keeping cats out of houseplants is for the human to give them a sopping blast from a squirt bottle every time they mess with the plant. Ah, good times.
Since, alas, humans don’t make good guard dogs, I recommend two things. First, give the cars something they CAN eat, and grow some cat grass (Also known as winter wheat) in your home. They’ll munch on it instead. Second, cut out a houseplant-container sized circle from hardware cloth, cut to the center of the circle, and cut out enough of the center so the cloth can be positioned around the stem. The cut out area should be large enough to avoid touching the stem and allow for stem growth. Once the hardware cloth is placed correctly, cover it with decorative moss mulch.
Or get rid of the houseplants. Or the cat. Your call.
Namaste,
Soup |
YART would like to acknowledge and give special thanks to our 46 yartists, including 31 from Taos. Please visit our yartist page to view their names and work. We are currently updating this page with photos and bios for each yartist...
In addition, the YART newsletter will be featuring articles on the yartists in upcoming issues to better acquaint you with these creative and talented people.
WELCOME to our newest yartists :
Indiana Cottrell : Metal Art/Firepits
Ellen Mancini : Pottery
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MOTHER'S DAY SALE
May 8, 9, 10
...
YART goes to the
Taos Home & Garden Expo
Thanks to all who stopped by! |
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?" Actually, who are you NOT to be? You are a child of GOD. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking, so that others will not feel insecure around you. We are born to make manifest the Glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us, it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
From Nelson Mandela's Inaugural Speech 1994
Submitted by Jane Glenn |
Editor/Writer : Whitney Glenn
Layout : Emily Bakko/Jane Glenn |
