Colour palette

Monet moved to the village of Giverny, about 90 kilometres west of Paris, in 1883. In 1886, when his passion for the colours of plants and flowers intensified, he went about transforming his own garden. Monet’s flawless feel for colour resulted in a brilliant colour palette. In spring, the garden was an explosion of colour with its vast quantities of flowering bulbs like tulips, daffodils and irises. His love of flower bulbs can also be seen in his paintings.

Two gardens

Monet passionately designed his first garden, ‘Clos Normand’, but was unable to enlarge it at a certain point because a railway track was in the way. This love of gardening soon took over again, however, and he started creating a garden on the other side of the tracks. Monet created an entirely different world in this garden than he had in the first one. It felt like a little piece of Japan but designed with the Monet touch. He called this garden ‘Le jardin d’Eau’ (The Water Garden).

Planting flower bulbs yourself

Inspired to start planting some flower bulbs yourself? If so, you could make your own ‘Monet Garden’. Choose flower bulbs that you think are beautiful, and combine the colours and shapes that make you happy. And remember: the sky’s the limit! The flower bulb assortment is available at www.bulb.com. How to plant flower bulbs:

• Dig a hole in the ground that is about three times as deep as the thickness of the bulb/corm/tuber. (Tip: always refer to the directions on the package.)
• Plant the flower bulb in the hole with its ‘nose’ pointing up and its ‘beard’ pointing down.
• Cover the flower bulbs with the soil dug from the hole.