Planting Spring Flowering Bulbs

You’ll see them in early spring, often blooming through the snow. Early blooming crocus are a sure sign that spring is on its way. The crocus flowers are soon followed by daffodils, tulips and hyacinths, each bringing its own distinct color to your garden.  

These spring blooms are from hardy bulbs that were planted in the fall.  Planting bulbs is the best way to have a colorful spring garden and now is the time to plant them.  

Bulbs available for planting now are hardy bulbs, which means they are cold-tolerant.  They will survive our winter weather and bloom for many seasons to come.

When it’s time to select the bulbs you’re going to plant, choose bulbs that are firm and light tan in color. If you want a succession of spring colors, choose early, mid and late blooming bulbs, of varying heights. Save the tag or mark the bag so you will remember the variety.

 

Bloom time is dependent on where you plant your bulbs and how deep you plant them. Bulbs planted near a fence or foundation are going to bloom sooner because the reflected heat warms the soil up. If your bulbs are coming up too early or you want to slow the bloom time, add 2" to 3" of mulch to the bed. To ensure spring blooms, there are a few things you’ll need to know. 

Where you plant your bulbs is important. Bulbs need at least 6 hours of sunlight to bloom properly. You could plant early blooming crocus and tulips in a normally shady spot such as under a tree because crocus and early season tulips will have bloomed before the trees begin to leaf out in the spring. An alternative would be to plant bulbs in pots and move the containers to the sunniest spot in your garden.

As with anything you plant, better soil equals better results, so take time to add amendments to the ground where your bulbs will be planted.  

The amendments for our soils are produced locally, like organic Earth Essentials Sheep, Peat and Compost or Cow and Compost.   

You can use a spade or garden fork to prepare the ground.  Augers and bulb planters are handy tools to have when you're planting your bulbs, especially around existing perennials and shrubs. Bulb planters work best when you’re using them in amended soil.

Add some Dutch Bulb Food to the ground before you place your bulbs, so the roots will grow into the fertilizer. 

 

Once the site is prepared, place the bulb in the ground with the pointed side up, roots down. With smaller bulbs it may be difficult to tell which side goes up.

One side will generally be flatter than the other. Place the flat side down. As a rule, plant the bulbs three times their height. A 2" tall bulb should be buried 6" deep. Cover the bulbs and mark the spot where they are planted. Water the site thoroughly. Check on your bulbs through the winter and water as necessary. For the best color display, plant bulbs in groups.  

In addition to Daffodils, tulips and hyacinths don’t overlook specialty bulbs such as dwarf iris and Dutch iris, allium and muscari. Planted now, these hardy bulbs will bring color to your spring garden for many seasons to come.