Plant SPRING BULBS
Illuminate spring containers, borders and meadows by getting bulbs in the ground from early September onwards, depending on the type
Be prepared for when your bulbs arrive. In the first instance, try to avoid impulse buys! It’s all too easy to buy bulbs like a child in a sweet shop and then come to regret it when the unplanted bulbs rot away in their bags.
Before the bulbs arrive, you need to have some idea of where you are intending to plant them – and when. If you need to store them temporarily, they can be kept in a dry, frostand mouse-free shed. Take the time to sort through them, labelling as you go.
Spring-flowering bulbs should be planted in autumn and tulips in November. Daodils form roots earlier than most so should be planted along with anemones no later than early
September. Favourites include the scented pheasant’s eye daodil, Narcissus poeticus var. recurvus (left), a lovely candidate for a bulb meadow.
Key to a successful spring show is understanding the sequential flowering of bulbs. With judicious planting, you can have a run of flowers from February to late May, starting with snowdrops, crocuses and Iris reticulata, and ending with late tulips such as ‘Queen of Night’, alliums and camassias. Be sure to order early to get the varieties you want.