Best of the bulbs

Summer-flowering bulbs such as lilies will give glorious colour – but you need to plant them now

For most gardeners, bulbs mean spr ing – from snowdrops, crocuses and daffodils through to hyacinths and tulips, they are the flowers that provide a burst of welcome colour during the coldest and bleakest months of the year. But there are also many lovely summerflowering bulbs that make invaluable plants to fill in gaps in borders, or to brighten up containers. If you want to enjoy them this year, now is the time to get planting.

The summer hyacinth,

Galtonia candicans, is a lovely South Afr ican native that produces waxy white bell-like flowers with a deliciously sweet fragrance. It will start flowering in July, just as the roses are going over, and continue until September. Galtonias need a warm, sunny position; plant them now with four or five in a group for the best effect. There’s also a pretty variety with pale green flowers, Galtonia viridiflora.

Lilies should ideally be planted in autumn, but if you find good-quality ones for sale – avoid bulbs that are already sprouting – it’s fine to plant them now. As long as you can keep the dreaded red lily beetle away from them, it’s hard to go wrong with lilies, whether in the ground or in pots. I like to plant them in lightweight plastic pots and move them into position in my borders once they’re in flower, though do remember they’re highly toxic to cats.

The choice of varieties to plant is overwhelming. If you want lots of fragrance, go for oriental lilies like pure-white ‘Casa Blanca’, pink, white and maroon ‘Star Gazer’, or ‘Muscadet’, which is white speckled with pink. Asiatic lilies don’t have fragrance but they are compact – ideal for pots – and come in a gorgeous range of colours. Try burgundy and orange ‘For ever Susan’, white and purple ‘Patricia’s Pride’ or the sunny ‘Yellow Country’.

With their sword- shaped leaves and vivid colours, crocosmias (also known as montbretias) provide fiery colour from July to October. They look fantastic in bold drifts among other late summer plants like dahlias, salvias and ornamental grasses; they also make excellent cut flowers. Plant them in a sunny spot in spring and they’ll increase year after year if left undisturbed. The most famous variety is the blazing red ‘Lucifer’; other good ones are dusky orange ‘ Emily McKenzie’, pinky orange ‘Severn Sunrise’, yellow ‘George Davidson’ and tomato red ‘Polo’.

If you want to cause a stir, place a pot of the peacock tiger flower, Tigridia pavonia, where your neighbours can see it – these are real showstoppers, coming in vibrant shades of custard yellow, white, shocking pink and scarlet, set off by gorgeously spotted centres. Plant the bulbs in a sunny spot once all risk of frost has passed, and give them plenty of water. Suppliers: dejager. co. uk, peter nyssen. com, westcountrylupins. co.uk ( for crocosmias).

Asiatic lily ‘Forever Susan’