Plant Bulbs Now for Color in the Spring!

It’s September.  So why am I telling you to be thinking about spring?  Isn’t it enough that you’ve begun your fall ritual of planting mums, cabbages, kale and pansies?  And, in the back of your mind, aren’t you secretly looking forward to the cold months when the garden sleeps, preparing to awaken anew in March? 

By spending a little cash, and a few hours digging in the garden now, you can be rewarded with color and fragrance from late February to early May.  “How is this possible?” you ask.  Bulbs.  It’s all about bulbs.

If you’re a gardener, you’ve been getting bulb catalogues for weeks now.  It’s such fun to look at the pretty pictures and buy dozens of everything.  Not only can you purchase your bulbs online, but most nurseries have great selections of bulbs right now.  I even picked up a nice selection of “P. Allen Smith” bulbs at Sam’s Club recently.  Let me give you a little guidance and some suggestions.  My first topic is tulips. 

First of all, you must realize that tulips are not perennial.  The first year they put on a great show.  If you’re lucky enough to live where the deer don’t, you’ll be rewarded with lots of tulips for your effort in the previous fall.  Then, the next year you anxiously await another glorious show. 

Alas, all you are greeted with are a few spindly blooms and a little foliage.  What went wrong?  Nothing went wrong; tulips just aren’t perennial.  I have been told that “Darwin” tulips are somewhat perennial.  I haven’t tried them, so I can’t guarantee it.  Because of the tulips inability to rebloom, most people grow them as annuals. 

No doubt you’ve seen landscape crews ripping out hundreds of tulips in commercial beds.   Perhaps you even shed a few tears for the plight of the tulip.  Don’t.  That’s just the nature of tulips. 

One final note.  Why do all the landscape companies plant only bright yellow and bright red tulips?  There are so many amazing combinations around and all I see at the hospitals and large commercial buildings are drifts of red and yellow. 

Get creative, guys!  Tulips come in nearly every color of the rainbow and also in a multitude of flower shapes. 

One tulip I do grow is “Angelique.”  It’s a pale pink beauty with flowers that resemble a peony.  Because of the deer, I only plant them inside the fenced area where my pool is. 

Let’s turn our attention to daffodils.   Daffodils are one of my favorite bulbs.  They reliably bloom every year and multiply readily.  Deer won’t eat them and they come in a wealth of sizes, shapes and colors.  Jason Delaney, Missouri Botanical Gardens “Bulb Boy” says that daffodils are his favorite bulbs.  I must concur; daffodils do it all. 

If you crave large, brightly colored daffodils, “King Alfred” is for you.  If you have a small yard and would like to plant a drift of short daffodils, “Tete-a-tete” is a great choice. 

Personally, I like a large, white daffodil.  “Stainless” or “Immortality” is a knockout if white is what you crave.  Many bulb companies prepare mixes of daffodils for the customer who prefers variety.  These are generally less expensive and expose the gardener to daffodils that they might not otherwise purchase. 

When I plant daffodils I choose a shovel over a bulb planter.  I plant a dozen or more daffodils in a large hole, repeating the pattern throughout my garden beds.  It makes quick work of planting and the show in spring is stupendous. 

My next favorite bulb is Snowdrops.  Few bulbs warm the gardeners’ heart in late winter like the snowdrop.  The low, white nodding flower pops up through the late winter snow, letting us know that spring can’t be far behind. 

My suggestion is to plant them along the edge of a flower border, close to your kitchen window so you can view them often.  Like daffodils, I plant a few dozen Snowdrops together, using my shovel instead of a bulb planter.  They are stunning planted en masse below a grove of trees.

For fragrance alone, Hyacinth steals the spring show.  In addition to the intoxicating fragrance, Hyacinth comes in a wide array of colors.  From brilliant sun-yellow, to pure, clean white, to passion pink, and deep amethyst, most colors of the rainbow can be found in Hyacinth.  One single Hyacinth bulb produces a huge stalk of tiny blooms.  They sit on sturdy stems about 10” tall. 

I plant Hyacinth in a narrow bed by my back door.  Then, each time I open the door to let the dogs out I get the scent of spring.  Unlike daffodils, Hyacinth will need to be replanted every few years.

I also plant Spanish Bluebells. Bluebells are an underutilized bulb with lots to offer.  They are deer resistant, fragrant, late blooming and a stunning blue color.  Plant a few dozen under a tree and you’ll become a fan as well!  And, as a bonus, they return every year, multiplying nicely. 

Crocus are a common early spring bulb.  The bulbs are inexpensive, tiny and easy to plant.  Dig a few large holes, drop 3 dozen bulbs in each hole, and wait for spring. 

Grape Hyacinth are darling little bulbs that look charming planted with tulips.  They come in many shades of blue and purple and they look great planted in mixed colors.  Again, these are inexpensive, deer resistant and easy to plant.

If, like me, you happened to visit Missouri Botanical Garden last spring, you had your socks knocked off by the stunning display of Alliums.  The entire front island bed leading to the Ridgeway Center was adorned with hundreds of “Globemaster” Alliums.  They bloom for a long period of time, and, as an added benefit, can be left in the garden as dried flowers. 

I have some in my yard and I am amazed at the sheer beauty of this bulb.  They are expensive, costing around $8 a bulb, but few bulbs can boast the beauty of Alliums.  I was told that the alliums at the garden were dug up and being stored for next spring.  I can’t wait to see where they will go!

In closing, I hope I have piqued your interest in spring bulbs.  A little effort now will reap huge rewards next spring.