My Nature Hills order arrived in the mail seven (7) days after placing the order. I was eager to get them into soil but we had forecasts for rainy, cool weather. I live in Central Virginia and we had a rather wet, chilly Spring this year. So, I was forced to wait until the weekend.

I planted the bulbs on May 14th. For the last couple of years, the squirrels dig holes in any garden bed that has been raked or dug into. Therefore, I am forced to start all my bulbs in containers on the deck and secure them with chicken wire or garden fencing. It doesn’t look very nice from the outset but once the plants take off, it will be worth the eyesore.

By May 31, we experienced much warmer weather with highs in the 80s and a few days close to 90. On June 13, thirty (30) days after planting, leaves began to emerge from the soil. I moved them into a screened enclosure but also spread a little Repels All on the top of the soil to deter the squirrels.

As the caladium plants grew, it was clear that they were outgrowing their pots. While they only had a few leaves on each plant, I transplanted them into larger pots which I placed on the deck knowing their bright leaves would bring some needed color to the space. The rich green and red leaves brighten my mood even on the cloudiest of days.

Just in time for the holiday, a white flower appeared on one of the plants on July 3 which was fifty (50) days after planting. It is July 6 and I have not noticed a flower on either of the other two caladium plants but I will update this post if and/or when that should happen. Nature Hills did not mention flowers in the plant description and I’ve read on other sites that not all caladium plants will produce flowers.

I was quite pleased with the quick delivery from Nature Hills, the health of the bulbs and the beauty of each of the plants. Nature Hills was quite right when it said this caladium would provide “an electric pop of color for those dull shady areas“.