START THINKING ABOUT SPRING BULBS
NEVER A BETTER TIME TO START PLANNING
ABOUT a month and a half ago, I wrote about preparations for the oncoming autumn season in the garden.
Well, it’s here!!
And to top it all off most of our region has finally received some pretty decent rainfall after one of the driest summers on record.
As temperatures moderate for the oncoming cool season, this moisture should hang around for quite a while in a well-mulched garden.
And these conditions are just right for you to start planning for your spring garden displays.
From about now onwards is a great time to be planting what I consider to be some of the most rewarding of the spring-flowering plant groups, the bulbs.
Now gardeners are a great bunch for categorising plants according to characteristics or origins, for example “conifers”, “natives” and “succulents”.
The term “bulb” is generally used to describe most plants that come in those brilliantly-evolved, pre-packaged forms of stored shoots, stems, flowers and roots that are ready to emerge once they’re exposed to moisture, and, in most cases, growing media.
In the true horticultural sense, the term bulb is applied to the package comprising a bud surrounded by modified leaves, sometimes called scales, held together by a flattened stem or base-plate, and an external, protective, papery “tunic”.
Examples of spring-flowering true bulbs are daffodils and jonquils (both flower from late winter through spring), Dutch Iris, grape hyacinths, true hyacinths, and tulips.
Ideally, your soil will be prepared at least a month prior to planting (still not too late!) with aged manure or compost.
The soil does not need to be too rich, as this will result in plenty of leaf growth at the expense of flowers.
Bulbs do demand good drainage, however, as wet soil will cause rot, which also means they do well in pots.
As a general rule, plant bulbs with the growing tip at a depth of twice the length of the bulb e.g. a bulb of 3cm length will have its growing tip about 6cm below the soil surface.
(There are some exceptions to this “rule” so it’s wise to do your research first.)
All the above bulbs except tulips can be planted straight into the garden in mid-late autumn (the warmer the winter the later the planting).
Tulips need a soil temperature below 11 degrees Celsius to form roots and flowers so, in our climate, will benefit from a period of chilling in the fridge for six to eight weeks before planting.
Lesser known true bulbs such as Snowflakes (Leucojum), Ifafa lily (Cyrtanthus mackenii), Spanish bluebells (Hyacinthoides), Alliums and Spring Star Flower (Ipheion) are worth trying in our milder climate areas.
Most bulbs multiply by producing offsets, sometimes called daughter bulbs, and large clumps can be divided about every three years.
Only fertilise bulbs (use blood and bone or a complete plant/bulb food) after flowering.
You can cut off spent flowers but leave the foliage to die down completely as it’s needed to help the plant build up reserves for next season.
Regularly grouped in the “bulb” category are corms, which are actually swollen stem bases.
After planting, new stems emerge from the top of the corm, roots from the bottom.
Babianas, Freesias, Ixias, Sparaxis and Tritonias are all spring-flowering corms ready for planting in autumn.
The same guidelines as for bulbs (depth, drainage) apply here.
Most plants grown from corms are pretty tough, and some border on being weedy, as they readily multiply by producing many cormlets around their base, and self-seed to boot!
Most of you who have grown Freesias know what I’m on about.
Thank goodness they redeem themselves with a wonderful perfume.
Fertilise corms after flowering and cut off the old flowers, particularly on Freesias, to prevent copious seed production.
A little gem I found a few years ago is Rhodohypoxis baurii, or Rose Grass.
These charming little plants are well worth sourcing and growing in pots, where they can be kept dry in winter whilst dormant.
Next in the “bulb” collection are the sometimes grotesquely-shaped, swollen underground stems or roots called tubers.
Anemones (A. coronaria) and Ranunculus are examples of spring-flowering tuberous plants.
Anemone tubers look like blunt thumbtacks whilst Ranunculus tubers can best be described as multi-fingered woody claws.
In both cases they must be planted with their pointy bits facing downwards.
Once again the same depth and drainage rules apply as for bulbs.
You can fertilise these beauties (both are well worth growing for a spring display) when buds appear as well as straight after flowering.
Once they die down you can lift and store them until next autumn, or leave them in situ if the drainage is good.
Rhizomes are last, but not least, in the spring-flowering “bulb” grouping.
They are fleshy, horizontal underground stems from which shoots and roots emerge.
Most Iris (Bearded, Louisiana and Japanese) are rhizomes, as well as Clivias.
Both are spring-flowering, with Iris sometimes producing blooms through to summer.
Iris rhizomes look somewhat like ginger, and are planted with some of the rhizome just at or above the soil level.
Whilst Iris prefer moisture right through the growing season, Clivias thrive in relatively dry conditions and delight in full or part shade.
Old Iris rhizomes won’t flower a second time, so lifting, dividing and replanting the young, new sections will ensure renewed displays each year.