WINTER BULBS

YELLOW aconites and snowdrops put on a wonderful show this winter. To make an even bigger splash next year, lift and divide any mature clumps in your garden now. Take up the largest of them with a garden fork. Bulbs lodge themselves into the ground, so dig deep.

Whittle snowdrop clusters down to individual bulbs. Replant the best singly, or in small groups, based on where you want them to pop up later. Plant deeply enough to bury the white parts of leaves and stems.

Aconite tubers lie closer to the surface. Lift, and gently break them up. Replant every fragment that carries a few leaves or spent flowers. Allow the foliage of transplanted aconites and snowdrops to die off. Don’t cut the leaves away, and allow seed pods to ripen naturally.