FLOWERS It's time to think spring, and that means bulbs

Brent and Becky's Bulbs features a living catalog.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- It's time to think about the spring-flowering bulbs you would like to plant this fall. A good reference and buying guide is the catalog from Brent and Becky's Bulbs in Gloucester, Va. The Heaths are nationally known bulb experts: Brent lectures on how to use bulbs in the landscape, while Becky writes bulb-related articles for magazines such as Fine Gardening.
Their fall catalog is extra special because every other page is filled with full-color photographs.
The catalog also introduces two more of the Heaths' hybrids jonquilla-type daffodils called Blushing Lady and Golden Echo.
Blushing Lady features a soft yellow flower with a halo at the base of the cup. When the flower matures, the edges of the cup develop a pink blush. It's sweetly fragrant.
Golden Echo has a longer-than-usual golden-yellow cup that "melts down" on its creamy white petals. Becky says it's "wonderfully fragrant."
Pay a visit
If you visit the Colonial Williamsburg or Yorktown areas on vacation, you should include a trip to the Heaths' new Bulb Shoppe, located in the bulb-shipping warehouse the couple opened last fall. The facility also features a "living catalog" growing outdoors on the property. The shop is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays-Thursdays and Saturdays.
You also can use the print or online catalog to place an order, then pick it up at the Bulb Shoppe to avoid shipping charges.
The complex is located adjacent to the farm, where the Heaths have grown and developed new bulbs as a family business for decades. Most of the bulbs are now grown in Holland.
XFor more information, call (877) 661-2852 or visit www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com.