Yesterday I supervised the planting of 5,000 spring-flowering bulbs. We laid them out in patterns and dug them one-by-one into the earth. When we were finished, we dressed the bulbs with mulch and all stepped back to admire our handiwork. You could almost sense the pulse of spring making its way up from underground.
ALMOST NEVER TOO LATE
In Maryland, it’s a little late to be planting spring bulbs. But according to local plant expert Patrick Gravel, as long as you can get a shovel in the ground, you’ve got time. Haven’t purchased any bulbs? Not to worry. Even if your favorite on-line bulb supplier has sold out, chances are your local nursery can still yield some interesting results.
Last week, Gravel came up from Richmond to speak to my garden club about spring bulbs. Below are some of the varieties he profiled. If you’re up for the job, many of them are still out there just waiting to be planted.
TOP SPRING BULBS
If you ask me, the challenge of planting spring bulbs is cold weather. Just when I’m turning my attention indoors, the bulbs need to go in the ground. This often requires an appetite for digging lots of holes outdoors when the temperature is hovering around 40°F (like yesterday.)
Then again, if you can visualize what your garden will look like in spring, the reward is directly proportional to the amount of energy you’re willing to expend.
Carpet of blue muscari and other spring bulbs (Keukenhof, Holland)
ALLIUM
Also known as ornamental onions, spring-blooming alliums are drought tolerant and easy-to-grow. Moreover, they come in a wide variety of colors, shapes and sizes. If you’re looking for drama, choose tall varieties like the giant purple-flowering Globemaster, Gladiator, and Purple Sensation, Or go for interesting shapes like the reddish-flowered, oval-shaped Drumstick, or the light purple, spidery-flowered Shubertii (Persian Onion).
Giant purple allium
ANEMONE
Small-sized and brightly-colored, anemones are the quintessential spring bulb. Blooming early- to mid- April, they naturalize easily. Anemone blanda, or Grecian Windflower, looks like a miniature daisy and grows to about 4 inches tall. It makes an excellent groundcover under tulips and daffodils.
Anemone blanda
CROCUS
Gravel calls crocuses ‘little surprises’. You need to plant them early, though, since they’re among the earliest spring bloomers, anywhere between mid-October to mid-November. Look for Giant Dutch Crocus, and the even earlier-blooming Snow Crocus.
Autumn Crocus, which is not a true crocus, but a colchicum, bears purple-pink or white flowers in September or October and must be planted in August.
Dutch Crocus
FRITILLARIA
A member of the lily family, these spring bulbs have unusual, bell-shaped flowers. Crown Imperial grows to 3 feet tall and has lily-like foliage, Snake’s Head grows to around 1 foot tall and has checkered petals, and Black Persian grows to around 3 feet tall and has purple/black flowers.
Snake’s Head fritillaria
HYACINTH
Gravel advises wearing gloves when handling hyacinths because the oil from these spring-flowering bulbs is an irritant. Highly fragrant, they naturalize quickly and are easy to force inside (more on that below.)
Sometimes, however, hyacinths can get floppy. Gravel recommends planting the bulbs deeper to give them more support or providing them with low caging to keep the blooms upright. Click here for Holland Bulb Farms’ selection.
Hyacinths
HYACINTHOIDES
Not the same as hyacinths, these woodland flowers have nodding, bell-shaped flowers colored bluish-lavender. They are commonly known as Spanish and English bluebells.
Spanish bluebells
MUSCARI
Commonly known as Grape Hyacinth, these highly-fragrant, tiny spring bulbs form rivers of brilliant blue to purple color under taller spring flowers. Plant them underneath daffodils or tulips for a brilliant spring display.
Muscari, commonly known as Grape Hyacinth
NARCISSUS (DAFFODILS)
Named for the Greek hunter who fell in love with his own beauty, narcissus come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and forms. Some of the most common daffodils are the traditional, single-flowered Trumpet, the slightly smaller Large Cup, the flat-flowered Small Cup with distinctly colorful edges and the clustered/layered cupped Double.
The diminutive Jonquil bears long, rush-like leaves and scented yellow or white flowers. Tazetta (also known as Paperwhite) flowers in bunches and is sweetly-fragrant. And the adorable Poeticus (also known as Pheasant’s Eye) has pure white flowers and small, red-rimmed cups that look like eyes.
Double daffodils
SNOWDROPS
“A very simple spring bulb, you can’t go wrong with these February-March bloomers and they naturalize easily,” said Gravel. Choose from Galanthus elsewii, Galanthus nivalis, and the taller Giant snowdrop, Leucojum aestivum.
“There are many, many different varieties of snowdrops out there with tiny, tiny differences, said Gravel. “It’s a really nerdy plant.”
Snowdrops
TULIPS
According to Gardenia.net, there are over 3,000 registered varieties of this popular spring bloomer. Some of the most common are Darwin, Triumph, Double, Fringed, Parrot, Fosteriana and Greigii. The diminutive species tulips like Bakeri are long-lived and great for the front of the border. Gravel recommends using chicken wire to protect the bulbs from digging animals.
Fringed tulips
FORCING SPRING BULBS INDOORS
Don’t have room outdoors? Forcing spring bulbs inside is easier than you may think. Gravel says the easiest bulbs to force indoors are amaryllis and paperwhites. ‘All they really need is water,” he said. The rest of the spring-flowering bulbs require a 6- to 8-week cooling period that mimics their outdoor period of dormancy.
Plant bulbs in well draining potting soil and keep them in your refrigerator at a temperature ranging around 45 degrees F for 6 to 8 weeks. Keep the soil moist, but not soggy. After the cooling period, bring the bulbs out, place in a sunny location and enjoy.
Amaryllis bulb just beginning to sprout indoors
Patrick Gravel works at Sneed’s Nursery in Richmond, Virginia and lectures frequently on plants and plant life. He can be reached at pgravel87@gmail.com.