At the beginning of the British winter, thoughts of spring flowers bobbing their heads above the frosty ground fill us with hope. If you want this feeling in your own garden this spring, now’s the time to get planting.
Getting bulbs into the ground now gives them a chance to charge over winter, ready to burst into spectacular colour in the new year.
Plant the right mixture and you could be looking at a kaleidoscope of colour from January all the way through to June. And, of course, they’ll be back every year, growing and multiplying with each passing season, so effort now means beautiful blooms for ages to come.
Flowering times
Spring bulbs have a range of flowering times. You can choose bulbs with different flowering schedules for a succession of colour or pick ones which flower together for a multifaceted all-at-once display.
Crocus, Galanthus (snowdrops) and dwarf Iris, like Iris reticulata, are all late winter flowering – popping up in January and February – so they’re among the earliest to appear.
While Iris prefer full sun, Crocus and Galanthus are happy in partial shade. This makes them fantastic for underplanting beneath deciduous trees and shrubs that lose their leaves for winter, since these allow some light through to the ground come spring. Both being rather small, growing to around 10–15cm high, it’s best to plant lots to make sure flowers don’t get lost.
Appearing in early to mid-spring, most varieties of Narcissus (daffodils), tulips and Hyacinth pop up next.
If, like me, you’re a big fan of daffs and want a spring full of them, you can get early-flowering varieties like ‘February Gold’ and ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation,’ which will flower in winter, and follow them up with March-flowering ‘Crewenna’ and April-flowering ‘Dutchmaster’ varieties.
Planting in clumps of at least six will help to strengthen your display. I love lining the garden path with them as a cheerful welcome for visitors.
Finally, in late spring, Alliums will join the party. Most varieties of these prefer full sun, so bear this in mind when planting. The flowers are generally showier and larger than earlier flowering bulbs but they still work best in clumps of several together for maximum impact.
Layer planting
Now that you know when different bulbs flower, you can put this knowledge to good use with layer planting. This enables you to plant a range of bulbs with different flowering times in a single container, without sacrificing any flower space.
To do it, take a container at least 50cm deep and plant bulbs as you would layer a lasagne. Begin by adding grit for drainage and part-filling with bulb compost.
Next, plant a late-flowering bulb variety, like Allium sphaerocephalon (round-headed garlic), being sure to space bulbs correctly according to their labels.
Then, cover with a layer of bulb compost and repeat with a mid-season bulb variety, such as the ‘Angelique’ cultivar of tulip. Again, cover with compost and repeat for an early-flowering variety, like Crocus chrysanthus ‘Spring Beauty.’
Finally, add a layer of winter-flowering pansies and you’ll have a succession of flowers from now all the way through to August 2019!
For extra oomph, you could even mix the bulbs in each layer—as long as their flowering times are similar, you won’t have any gaps and the different colour-combinations can be remarkably effective.
Naturalising bulbs in the lawn
Another option if you’re looking to spruce up your lawn or simply to gain extra flower space in your garden, is to naturalise bulbs within the lawn.
First, choose bulbs that finish flowering before March, when the grass will start growing again, so that you won’t struggle to mow while they’re in flower.
Next, give the lawn a good trim—this will keep it neat and tidy and enable flowers to be clearly seen next year.
For a natural look, take handfuls of bulbs and scatter them haphazardly around the lawn. Plant them wherever they land, ensuring that they are not too close together as this will reduce flowering.
Plant bulbs at three times their own depth to stop them from drying out as the weather warms up. This is where bulb-planting tools can really come into their own.
I particularly like a long-handled bulb planter, which can be pushed into the ground with your foot, just like a garden spade. It cuts a circular space just right for a single bulb and does away with the difficulty of digging into the hardened ground with a trowel.
They also do handheld bulb planters for use in borders and containers.
Place bulbs in the holes and twist them into the ground as if screwing in a lightbulb. This helps to ensure there is no space for water to collect underneath where it could rot the bulb.
Loosen the soil from the plug of lawn you just removed and use it to cover the bulb, then simply replace the grass on top, level with the surrounding lawn.
In spring time, you’ll be greeted by the delightful flowers pushing their way up through the grass.
Reader questions
My Bromeliad is producing baby plants, what should I do with them?
Most Bromeliads flower only once and then produce offsets, known as pups, before dying. Wait for the pups to reach half the height of the mother plant, then cut them away using a sterilised sharp knife or saw. Pot in orchid compost and support with a cane. Don’t be alarmed if pups don’t have their own roots yet—these will readily develop once cut away. Place in indirect light and keep the compost lightly moist while the pups get established.
How do I keep the worms in my wormery warm over winter?
Wormeries are a fantastic way to produce your own compost and reduce household waste. To keep worms warm in winter, do three things: first, position the wormery in a sheltered spot against a wall or shed to reduce cold breezes; second, put a hunk of bread or pasta inside as this will give off heat as it breaks down; third, wrap your wormery with leftover bubble wrap to help retain heat. This will get your worms through winter no problem.
David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
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