Variety show Pick the best spring bulbs for you

WE wouldn’t be without spring bulbs but our challenge is finding the right variety for the right place. If you haven’t bought and planted bulbs yet, there’s still time to do so. Wherever you’re planting, bulbs need good drainage as they rot in wet soil and many need reasonable fertility to recharge for the following year.

But ca’ canny when choosing. Every genus includes species that only work in one kind of place so you may need help when buying from open trays with scant information about varieties.

Corydalis, pictured, take many forms. The European C. lutea is safe as it’ll grow anywhere. C. solida is a bit more choosy. I’ve seen it growing wild in a steeply sloping beech wood above Aigle in Switzerland, showing it needs very sharp drainage and copes with dappled shade.

Solida’s pinky-red blooms are unusual for spring, especially the brick red of popular ‘George Baker’. But be warned: its colour isn’t always stable and self-sown spreaders may revert to a pinkish shade.

C. flexuosa, with brilliant blue flowers, must have shady, preferably woodland conditions.

Every place suits a range of different bulbs. Rough grassy areas are ideal for tough, freely spreading and often tall types, like bog standard daffs and snowdrops. As they are for the charming little blue spikes of grape hyacinth Muscari armeniacum because long grass conceals its ugly long-lived foliage.

The nodding, star-like flowers of Erythronium Dogs’-tooth violet are a surefire winner in grassy spots with partial shade. In the 17th Century when aphrodisiacs were all the rage, a cure for syphilis was equally important and Erythronium roots were advocated for this. Russian Tartars less romantically made soup out of them. Rather boringly, I’m attracted to the flowers.

Chionodoxas do well in an open sunny place, largely because their natural environment is close to the snow line. But these choice specimens can be overshadowed in longer grass, so are probably better suited to a border.

Bulbs must die back neatly in a border to prevent straggly, untidy foliage, so multi-headed species of narcissus like ‘Sail Boat’ are a good choice.

And Hyacinths are much more than just Christmas house plants. For me, their strong scent can be a bit overpowering in a room but there’s no problem outdoors and, critically, the foliage dies back unobtrusively.

A border is also the place for the pretty blue flowers of Scillas. They emerge early and only reach 4cm tall. If you’re not troubled by squirrels, you may find tulips will thrive in your bed, but badgers are my downfall. They ruthlessly dig up and consume every available bulb.

So pots solve my problem. I foil my greedy visitors by placing wire netting above the bulbs and cover with more compost. Tulipa sylvestris survives. Its golden yellow petals with grey green

streaking flushed on the back of the the tepals are not to be missed.

Unusually for tulips, T. Sylvestris is scented and pots let you get up close to enjoy their subtle fragrance. This applies to the enchanting shape and colourings of many choice specimens. Where else could you put little Narcissus Jack Snipe or February Gold.

This is also the place for varieties of dwarf Iris reticulata with subtle markings on the falls, like ‘Katharine Hodgkin’. Or the grape hyacinth ‘Golden Fragrance’, with its delightful scent.

I’ve learned to use pots to trial some bulbs: would the shade and colour of a particular one blend with the rest of the bed?

This technique started when my wife Jane and I had crossed swords over the hyacinth ‘Gipsy Queen’. She had thought the apricot flowers fitted beautifully, I was convinced it was too pink.