PlantFiles: Spanish Bluebell, Wood Hyacinth
Hyacinthoides hispanica

Lovely as an underplanting to lilacs. They are very eager, and care should be given to their placement. I use them with daffodils and ferns for a nice transition.

These are weedy in Seattle and cannot be removed easily. In shady places they spread pretty fast. They do look nice in May, but I would not plant unless you are sure you don't want to grow anything else, ever.

Beautiful little plant. My mother always had it in her beds and I keep them too. I've never had trouble with them taking over in my zone 8, they stay in nice little clumps here. They come in blue, pink and white and are adorable when blooming.

A bought a house recently in the Seattle area and the yard is over run by wood hyacinth. It is a pretty plant but I consider it a noxious weed in my yard. It has taken over the garden beds and spread into the woods next to my property and overwhelming the native ground covers. It forms giant masses of bulbs and also must spread by seed because it turns up everywhere. Unless you dig out every piece of the bulb, it will regrow. I have left bits of torn-up bulb on the driveway all winter and the bits sprout and flower in the spring right on the concrete! I don't believe in spraying herbicides but I might for this one. It is out of control. I prefer my native plants to this foreigner.

A good mid-spring flowering bulb which multiplies (for me at least) very quickly. They come in a range of pastel colors including whites, pink/rose and light to mid-blue. I have seen some major plant nurseries selling these as 'English Bluebells' when in fact they originated in Spain, and are more properly named 'Spanish Bluebells' or commonly called 'Wood Hyacinths'. Mine came from the Netherlands, so European countries have had this plant around for a long, long time no doubt. I like to keep perennial gardens in bloom with a variety of mixed plants, and this one is a good choice.

Atlanta - I have this in very dry shade under some huge sweet gum trees. I have heard them called "brutes" as they do multiply, but in a woodland setting I think this is a positive feature. They are so lovely in their blue masses. I do not find them anymore "invasive" than iris or daylily.

I have a small patch of these given to me by my mother-in-law a number of years ago. They do well even in an well drained but moist area with clay soil in part shade. The dainty, lavendar bell shaped flowers are a delight in late spring!

This plant does much better in warmer areas than the English bluebell. It is larger and a bit stiffer in its growth habit, a lovely blue in a Spring garden. Mine seem quite intolerant of shade, they'll flower in full sun, but anywhere where shade has developed in Spring they stop flowering, though still produce lush foliage. They are very easy to move.

Fabulous freely-spreading perennial. Naturalized in Atlanta city limits, can be seen popping up in the most unkempt overgrown yards around town.

Has naturalized in my shady, wet back yard. Blooms a couple weeks earlier in full sun, but spreads into shady areas first. Heavy bloom late March early April; very fragrant flowers. Clumps of vivid green daffodil like foliage about 12-18" tall with a two foot spread send up as many as eight flower stalks with a dozen blooms apiece.

The "native" type here in Atlanta holds a deep purple bloom. Very sweet plant pops up with the daffodils in spring and blooms shortly after. In fact a couple of tall, silvery-blue (foliage) daffodils and the wood hyacinth come up in a mixed patch and the combination is smashing. Nature has a great eye for drama...

A wonderful addition to a woodland garden. They come in a variety of colors, and by allowing them to naturalize, some variations can occur. Plant some late-emerging perennials or annuals to help mask the bare spaces when they go dormant.