When the first spring bulbs unfurl, they light up the sleeping garden with a much-needed burst of color. This underground transformation has captivated gardeners for centuries and, now, flowering bulbs are making a colorful resurgence in modern garden design. Today's bulb selection is more diverse and impressive than ever before. Gardeners of every skill level and design taste can find sleeping beauties . From an endless array of unique tulips and daffodils to Pacific Northwest natives like camas, this quick guide will equip you with the know-how to use the fall planting season to secure a vibrant yet low-maintenance spring beauty!
What ARE Bulbs?
Bulbs are a bit of a catch-all term. 'True bulbs,' tubers, corms, and rhizomes are all different ways that plants store energy and nutrients underground to support future growth. This strategy allows them to survive major disturbances like freezing temperatures. When the conditions are right, buds begin to emerge from the soil, bursting into the lush foliage and cheery flowers we adore. In the meantime, they need relatively little maintenance: containers may need regular watering during dry spells, but, for most bulbs planted in the ground, you can set and forget them over the winter.
Design Tips
Embrace a Color Palette
A defined color palette is an easy way to create a cohesive look — plus, you get to delight in the joy of surrounding yourself with your favorite colors!
- Sunny yellow
- Purple and orange
- Black and pink
- All white
Check out our 'Bulbs That Belong Together' blog post for most pairings our designers find absolutely stunning!
Plant in Groupings
Clustering several bulbs of the same type together creates abundant and unified plantings. You can play around with different patterns of bulbs to create a checkerboard or mosaic of blooms.
Take Advantage of Spatial AND Temporal Design
You can accomplish some gorgeous bulb garden designs by carefully planning the placement of the bulbs, but arranging bulbs with different heights will take the look to a new level. It's also worth thinking about the timing of your blooms so that you can enjoy spring flowers throughout the season. Layer early bloomers and latecomers together for continuous color.
Bulb Are Perfect Pals for Containers
At Cornell Farm, we're big on the 'bulb lasagna' method — layering bulbs of different sizes and bloom times in a container pot for long-lasting spring interest in a compact form.
How to Plant Bulbs
Nail Down the Design
First, decide how you want to arrange the bulbs in your container or landscape. Use the bulb packaging to imagine what the final flowers will look like. It can be helpful to stage your bulbs on the ground before digging so that can refine the layout.
Do Your Research
Factors like ideal planting time, spacing, and depth can vary greatly, even between different varieties of the same species. The back of your bulbs' packages are often packed with information about the best conditions for that plant, so use that information to fill in the specifics.
Dig the Holes
Use a trowel or bulb planter to dig out plug of soil to the depth listed on the package.
Fertilize
Sprinkle nourishing bone meal fertilizer to ensure that your bulbs have all the nutrients they need to to thrive.
Plant Your Bulbs
Plant the bulb with the pointed side facing upwards -- this is the growth point where your flowers will emerge in the spring. When the bulbs are planted to the right depth, backfill the holes with native soil.
Keep The Bulbs Hydrated (But Not Too Hydrated!)
Bulbs retain moisture miraculously well in the ground and the autumn and winter rains will do most of the work for you, but you may want to occasionally water your bulbs during cool season dry spells. A thin, fine layer of mulch will help retain moisture. If you're planting in containers, make sure that the soil is watered regularly. Most bulbs are vulnerable to rot if the substrate is too soggy, so avoid boggy areas with poor drainage — or aim for moisture-loving varieties.
Protect from Hungry Critters
In some cases, foraging squirrels, rats, and other rodents have been known to try to devour bulbs before they have a chance to grow! Using wire mesh or cages can help deter wildlife from messing with your bulb garden. Providing an alternative food source like wildlife-friendly shrubs can also help your animal neighbors resist the urge to go after your bulbs.
Watch the Magic
Tending to a bulb garden is an art of patience, but that means these are some of the lowest-maintenance and highest-reward plantings of the entire year.
Our best selection of bulbs arrives in late September, right in time for the seasonal rains and the perfect planting weather. Each year, we bring in a mixture of elegant classics and new varieties that keep your garden fresh. Visit us in-store to browse our full bulb selection and, if you missed the window for bulbs, don't worry — we sell a wide variety of sprouted bulbs like tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths in early spring and dahlias in the summer.
