Home
Up | |
Planting Bulbs
Spring-flowering bulbs are available in such a variety of colors
and blooming times that you can be treated to continuous color --
and continually changing color schemes -- from late winter to
summer. Now is the time to plan your parade of spring color.
Here are some tips to guide you.
Planting:
* Bulbs prefer rich, well-draining soil amended with compost or other
organic matter. They won't grow well in poor or compacted soils.
Loosen the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches.
* Most bulb plants grow best in full sun (at least in regions north of
U.S.D.A zone 9). However, don't calculate how much sun an area
gets in early spring or in fall when any trees above them have no
leaves. Determine the light level in summer when the trees have
leafed out. The bulb foliage grows into early summer and needs
the sun to synthesize food for next spring's flowers.
* In zones 9 and 10, locate bulbs in an area that is shaded from
late morning to late afternoon. This will keep the plants cooler
and prolong bloom.
* Bulbs look best when they're massed rather than lined up like
soldiers. When planting, dig up a large enough area to scatter
the bulbs. Or use a bulb planter or a spade to dig individual holes
close together.
* If you live in a southern region that receives less than 12 to 14
weeks of temperatures below 50 degrees during the winter
(typically south of zone 8), you'll need to chill certain bulbs before
planting by placing them in a refrigerator or cool (below 50 degrees)
basement. Follow these guidelines for the chilling requirements:
Tulips: need 14 weeks
Hyacinths: need 12 weeks
Crocus: need 4 weeks
Snowdrops and scilla: need 6 weeks
Grape hyacinths: need 12 weeks
* Plant bulbs at a depth equal to 3 to 4 times their height. For
example, a 3-inch daffodil bulb should be planted 9 to 12 inches
deep. (In heavy soil, plant 9 inches deep, in sandy soil, plant 12
inches deep.)
* If space is limited, bulbs can be planted in layers. Dig a hole
deep enough to accommodate the largest bulbs -- daffodils and
hyacinths -- then cover them with soil and plant tulips, then cover
the tulips and plant crocus or other small bulbs on top.
Fertilizing:
* At planting time, bulbs need fertilizer, such as Holland Bulb
Booster (9-9-6) or a 10-10-10 fertilizer. (Although bone meal has
been traditionally recommended for bulbs, it lacks nitrogen, a
necessary nutrient.) Use about 1/2 cup of fertilizer per 10 square
feet, and sprinkle it on top of the soil after planting, not in the hole.
Fertilizer in the hole may burn tender, young roots.
* Fertilize established bulb beds in the fall, too. All the foliage is
dormant then so it may be difficult to locate bulb beds, especially
if they're naturalized. Try planting grape hyacinths (Muscari armeniacum)
as indicator bulbs. They produce small blue flowers in the spring but also send
up fall foliage. Plant them around the edge of the bulb area to mark your
plantings.
Pests:
* To deter rodents from chewing on your bulbs, you can line the planting
hole with 1/2- to 1-inch diameter chicken wire.
Q. Will bulbs naturalize in my zone 9 garden?
A. Certain bulbs should be treated as annuals in the deep south because
they don't easily naturalize. These include Allium neapolitanum, Dutch
iris, snow crocus (Crocus chrysanthus), paperwhite narcissus (Narcissus
‘Ziva'), and star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum).
|
