Crocuses, now appearing in gardens near you, are like tiny rays of light in the sea of winter garden debris. They invite you to look closer and demand that you gently sweep away the detritus around them so that they can be better appreciated. In the gardens of crocus lovers, the little snow crocuses generally appear first, followed eventually by the Dutch giants, the showiest specimens in the crocus world.
I love them all for their brightness and audacity in emerging when it is still a little cold. Among my favorites are the ones long known as “tommies”—Crocus tommasinianus.
You may have seen tommies and not known them. They appear very early are about the size of the snow crocuses, but with more elongated flowers, which adds to their elegant appearance. At the first sign of sun and warmth, they open out into medium lavender stars, with golden anthers in the center.
Originally native to European areas in the northern Balkans, Crocus tommasinianus, was first described back in 1847. Its winsome appearance and native toughness caught the attention of gardeners and its popularity spread. In fact, the species has gained such a following that I always wonder whether it has been completely depleted in its home area.
Tommies love to multiply and seem to wander at will. My original clump, which I have divided several times, has flourished in relatively poor soil and less than optimal conditions in the back garden for at least a decade. Every year, I find single flowers or even groups of two or three in nearby lawn and garden areas. I know I did not put them there, so I attribute the unexpected appearances to squirrel landscaping, that well-known horticultural technique that involves squirrels’ tendency to save supposed food items by burying them in random places. This phenomenon flies in the face of the commentary in some catalogs that alleges that tommies are immune to squirrel landscaping. I don’t believe it for a moment. Most gardeners—especially those without large dogs–have experienced squirrel landscaping and no bulb or large-seeded species is immune. Every year I pull at least ten squirrel-planted chestnut seedlings out of the yard. As far as the tommies go, the squirrels most likely harvested the bulbs and found them too unappealing to eat right away, but ended up burying them for later—just in case catastrophe took out the thousands of other stockpiled squirrel pantry supplies.
Whether or not you believe in squirrel landscaping, most horticultural sources also label tommies as resistant to being consumed by deer and other garden varmints. I agree, as the only damage ever done to tommies in my garden was inflicted by the less-than-dainty feet of Mr. Antlers and his crew.
Plant Crocus tommasinianus in the fall and do so with a generous hand. You can buy lots of them for relatively little money. They like sun, but remember that they also bloom well before the deciduous trees leaf out. That means they are perfect for planting underneath those trees. Even without squirrel landscaping, tommies also like to be naturalized in grass. Just make sure that you don’t mow before the leaves have died back.
Breeders have not created hundreds of tommie varieties, but a few exist. For lovers of rosy purple, there is ‘Roseus’, which dates to 1924. Intermingling ‘Roseus’ with regular tommies makes a nice combination. ‘Barr’s Purple’ is a time-tested variety, with blooms that are a bit larger and darker than the species. ‘Lilac Beauty’ features flowers that are a softer, more blue-purple shade than regular tommies.
If you know someone with a clump of tommies, throw yourself on his or her mercy now and ask for a small division. It should grow bigger every year. Barring that, make a note for next fall and set aside a few dollars to buy some bulbs. You can get them from Old House Gardens, 536 Third St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103. (734)995-1486, www.oldhousegardens.com (Catalog $2.00). They are also available from John Scheepers, 23 Tulip Drive, Bantam, CT 06750, (860) 567-0838, www.johnscheepers.com ( Free Catalog).