Small Is Beautiful: Muscari (Grape Hyacinths)

Grape hyacinths – the essence of early spring – appear around March, and April depending on the variety.

• They are highly reliable early-flowering bulbs that have an average height of around 15 to 25 cm.
• Although the deep blue ones are the most familiar, there are other kinds as well. They can also be white, lilac, purple, violet, pink, bicolored, or various shades of blue.
• There are also tall and short cultivars and even a double-flowering cultivar: Muscari armeniacum 'Blue Spike'. The flower stem of this attractive grape hyacinth bears tightly packed clusters of blue flowers followed by decorative seed pods.

Planting Muscari is easy

• The best time to plant them is in October and November.
• Make planting holes and plant at least 25 bulbs in the same place for a good visual effect. If you bury them about 4 inches (10 cm) below the surface, success is assured.
• Once planted in a favorable spot – a sunny to a semi-shaded location that stays fairly dry during the winter – they can pop back up year after year. If this naturalizing is what you want, choose a variety such as Muscari latifolium.

Fragrant Muscari

Varieties with extra fragrance include the sweetly scented Muscari aucheri, Muscari armeniacum ‘Blue Spike’, Muscari botryoides ‘Album’, Muscari muscarini, and Muscari macrocarpum ‘Golden Fragrance’.

Worth a closer look

These little jewels are really worth taking a closer look at. This way, you can see all their little details. And/or pick a few to put in a little vase. Simply beautiful!