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Bulbs Bulbs and more Bulbs!

By Jos Van Hage

September is always an exciting time of year for me as this is the time of year when all the fall bulbs come in. Coming from Holland, it brings back childhood memories of working on the family bulb farm. I gained a lot of first hand knowledge on bulb growing and continue to learn more from my brother who still runs the family farm in Holland. It is always interesting to see the new varieties and colors that come out each year.

Bulbs are easy to grow as they contain everything they need within the bulb itself. A bulb is an underground storehouse with the flower/s hidden inside the bulb, along with the needed energy to grow a healthy flower. Keeping this in mind it only makes sense to choose the largest bulb as this will hold the largest flower, which in spring will give you the largest display. Larger bulbs tend to cost a little more money as they take longer to grow but in the end, it is well worth the extra pennies. Bargain bulbs tend to be small and depending on size will produce a smaller flower or no flower at all.

For successful growth you want to plant the bulb as early as possible as this will give the bulb plenty of time to form a good root system. Planting bulbs in September or early October is the best time for Prince George as winter can settle in by the end of October. When planting bulbs plant them in a well-drained soil in a sunny to partial shade location. Dig the hole and before placing the bulbs in the hole sprinkle a handful of bonemeal in the bottom of the hole before placing the bulbs in, as this will form good roots. Cover them with soil, then water them thoroughly, and then sprinkle some bulb fertilizer over them. It is important to keep bulbs evenly moist before the frost sets in.

When planting bulbs you want to plant them in-groups of no less then 8-10 per group for a good show. One bulb on its own does not have the same impact. For an awesome show, plant a large group of bulbs of the same color together. A good thing to remember is that in spring when the bulb has finished blooming you need to remove the finished flower from the stem, but leave the stem and foliage as they need to die back naturally on their own in order for next years flowers to form. So with this in mind plant bulbs where the dying foliage will be hidden by shrubs or perennials that will come up or leave out later. For early blooming perennials or late blooming bulbs keep the colors in mind when choosing bulbs as you want the flower colors to compliment each other. Another thing to keep in mind is the height of bulbs and perennials, as you do not want to have taller perennials cover lower blooming bulbs. If planted properly with some planning you can have a stunning floral display for many weeks in spring. Just keep in mind time of bloom, color, and size.

Another look that can be achieved when planting bulbs is naturalizing. This is done by planting bulbs as they would appear in nature so you would gently toss a few bulbs on the ground and plant them where they land. This looks very nice in a wooded area or along a stream. When planting bulbs this way you need to be careful later in the season if using herbicides as they will also kill the bulb.

Jos


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