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Plant Spotlight: Siberian Squill

April 8th, 2010

I have these tiny little bulbs that bloom every spring in the garden. I always wonder if they’re going to emerge and then one day – there they are. They’re quite lovely and worth having around. They’re so delicate and lovely compared to most spring bulbs. They also produce food for the bees in an early time when they don’t have a lot of other options. My first scilla bloomed on March 21 this year.

The great thing about scillas or Siberian Squill is that they’re deer resistant (at least in my garden). I’m always searching for deer proof options for plants I love. Since crocuses are a deer delicacy here (although some places claim they’re deer proof), I’ll settle for lovely scillas instead.

Another think I like about these little bulbs is that they’re not very common. I’ve only seen them once in another garden. Having something a little lesser known in the garden is a great thing!

I won’t rewrite all the information about scillas here, if you want more info read this in depth post about them.

Do you have any lesser known spring bulbs that you like?

15 Comments to “Plant Spotlight: Siberian Squill”
  1. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by mark mile, Susy Morris. Susy Morris said: Plant Spotlight: Siberian Squill http://goo.gl/fb/1G6tE #plantinformation #springbulbs […]

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  2. Lisa@ The Cutting Edge of Ordinary on April 8, 2010 at 6:38 am

    I have the same Siberian Squill in my yard too. They always grow in front of the Tiger Lillys. I recently just found out about a flowering bush called Chinese Snowballs? Have you heard of them? They look like a white white hydrangea. So pretty. I have to try and find one.
    .-= Lisa@ The Cutting Edge of Ordinary´s last blog ..Wordless Wednesday~ High today – 84 =-.

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  3. Corrie on April 8, 2010 at 9:22 am

    Another great thing about squill is that it spreads by bulblets AND by seed, so you can get a lot of beautiful blue flowers out of not that many bulbs planted. And I love that it blooms at the same time (around here) as ‘Tete a tete’ daffodils, because I love the blue and yellow together!

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  4. Dave on April 8, 2010 at 9:22 am

    Deer resistant means another plant on my list to get!
    .-= Dave´s last blog ..Trees, Shrubs, and Emerging Leaves =-.

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  5. Tree on April 8, 2010 at 9:33 am

    I have these growing wild all over my yard. I might have to watch for bulbs when I start digging everything up, I think I would like to see them come up after I am done. My daughters school is also considering planting these in our entry circle
    .-= Tree´s last blog ..A Moment of Self Adulation =-.

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  6. Jaspenelle on April 8, 2010 at 10:12 am

    That last picture looks like something straight out of a gardening book, SO well captured!

    This is only year two for me in this house so I’m still trying to identify everything! The only perennials/bulbs I’ve planted (outside of raised beds and containers) are summer daffodils, toad lillies and coneflowers.
    .-= Jaspenelle´s last blog ..Where to mame? =-.

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  7. MAYBELLINE on April 8, 2010 at 10:29 am

    Grape hyacinth. Don’t know if it’s lesser known; but it’s lesser known in my garden.
    .-= MAYBELLINE´s last blog ..Bye Bye Birdies =-.

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    • Susy on April 8, 2010 at 5:11 pm

      I do love grape hyacinths. I keep wanting to add some to the gardens here. Must add them to my fall planting list.

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  8. keewee on April 8, 2010 at 10:37 am

    I have a bunch of little blue flowers in my garden which were here when I moved in. I don’t know what they are but look similar to the Squill. I will go and take a closer look and compare.

    Reply to keewee's comment

  9. Pampered Mom on April 8, 2010 at 3:32 pm

    Oh my! You’re the answer to my curiosities! I think that’s what this particular plant is (http://tinyurl.com/yeu5z5e) in my garden!
    .-= Pampered Mom´s last blog ..Feeding the Fishies =-.

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    • Corrie on April 8, 2010 at 5:09 pm

      Actually, yours are a similar bulb called puschkinia, sometimes called striped squill.

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  10. elizabeth on April 8, 2010 at 5:25 pm

    We found a patch of these little blue flowers on our nature walk this week. I posted them on our blog and asked if anyone knew what they were. One of my lovely readers posted the link to your blog. Thanks for shedding some light on these little beauties. I think I will be adding them to my garden.
    .-= elizabeth´s last blog ..Get Out and Explore! =-.

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    • Susy on April 8, 2010 at 5:41 pm

      Great, glad to be of help identifying a plant. Sometimes it’s hard to find the name of a plant when you see it.

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  11. Michael on April 8, 2010 at 11:20 pm

    I love those little flowers too! I live in Toronto and we have them growing EVERY WHERE right now, mostly in shady damp places, but they add so much needed color to the city!

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  12. Jennifer on April 9, 2010 at 10:34 am

    Mom gave me quite a few of these a few years ago and they’re one of the first to bloom here. I always know things are warming up when the squill show their lovely blue petals!
    .-= Jennifer´s last blog ..Life’s Magic =-.

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About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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