Bulb Planting 2018

As growth slows down in the garden we can stand back and admire our achievements this year.

Shrub forms maturing, luscious bedding plant displays brightening up dull corners after being watered daily, the perfectly maintained veggie patch and the beautifully manicured lawn. 

OK, I’ll stop dreaming now.  At the beginning of the growing year that’s how we mostly expect the season to progress, keeping on top of things. 

If you are anything like me this only lasts a couple of weeks early on.  Next time I look at the garden its gone wild. Pea and bean supports have collapsed, I have courgettes the size of small Zeppelins and as tough as leather, the pots and containers now only support weeds as the bedding plants in pots have died from neglect and toppled over. The lawn edges are so long air traffic control should be notified.

It’s all good though and I’ll probably just leave everything until spring before I tidy as long as nothing flops onto the paths. There’s debate every year whether to clear up or leave dead plant growth and old seed heads. I tend to leave everything as I think it’s lovely to look at, holds the soil together and is a bit of a haven for overwintering insects and wildlife. It also means nature does most of the work, which is fine by me.

One job that can be done this time of year is to plant a few bulbs for next spring. Forward planning is probably one of the most challenging things I do in the garden as I’m generally a “live for today” sort of person who generally doesn’t plan much further than his next meal.

If you are organized then let’s take a look at what bulbs we can put in the ground now for a splash of spring colour. 

Plant Bulbs in Autumn for Spring Colour

Spring flowers popping up signals the rebirth of the garden and the start of a new growing season. Nothing lifts the spirits after a long, dark winter more than the sight of the first daffodils opening up.

Autumn is perfect for planting bulbs as the soil is still warm. This will allow them to develop their root system, which in turn allows them to flower in spring rather than summer.

September is the time for buying bulbs as a lot of them will be reduced because the garden centres need to clear them out fir winter stock.  October is the optimum time for daffodils; November for tulips. So this year we are well ahead of the game.

Top Tips

• When buying bulbs, reject any that are soft or showing signs of mould. Small bulbs may not flower in their first year.
• Bulbs should be planted in holes three to four times as deep as the bulb itself. So, for example, a 1in crocus bulb needs to be planted in a hole 3-4in deep.
• If you are not sure which way up a bulb should go, plant it on its side: its stem will find its own way up.
• Plant pots and window boxes with no more than two layers of bulbs to prevent the unsightly spectacle of later-flowering plants appearing through the dying foliage of earlier ones.

Once you’ve chosen a variety of bulbs that you like, plant them haphazardly in amongst your borders for a beautifully undone look come spring, or organise them neatly into a layered display for a more dazzling effect or put them in pots to plant out into the garden as they flower.

In Pots

Fill large plastic pots with your favourite bulbs and, just before they are about to flower, use them to plug holes in the border. Plastic pots can also be slipped inside more elegant terracotta ones and whipped out when the bulbs are over. I generally store the pots behind the shed to allow the foliage to die down.  This can be done year after year with a bit of top dressing and weed control.

Bulbs in Hedges

The dry conditions at the base of hedges make ideal growing conditions for many bulbs. Tulips will be very happy on the south-facing side of a hedge, and can be left undisturbed for years.  On the shady side of the hedge, encourage carpets of Anemone blanda  for a trouble free ground cover.

On their Own

Eighteenth-century gardeners planted tulips individually, the better to appreciate their beauty. Bulbs planted singly in small terracotta pots and placed in an ordered manner around the garden bring instant elegance and formality. Lily-flowered tulips, Fritillaria persica or large-flowered alliums give a simple minimalist display.