It’s hard to imagine that it’s already time to get our gardens ready for autumn bulb planting while the temperatures are still climbing into the high 80s. But if creating a flourishing bed of vivid or muted blooms is your springtime objective, get started right away! The best location to get your bulbs, tubers, and rhizomes is at our annual Fall Plant & Bulb Sale.
Bulb planting can seem intimidating if you’ve never done it before, just like any other sort of gardening. We have a team of professionals who can help you get a head start on making your flower beds the talk of the neighborhood, which is a blessing.
Think about the following before purchasing your bulbs:
- Will you grow them in a sunny or shaded area?
- Do you want your flowers to blossom at a certain time? In general, very early bloomers include crocus, snowdrops, dwarf iris, and Siberian squill. Next are common hyacinths, fritillaria, tulips, daffodils, and grape hyacinths. In the late spring or early summer, alliums, bearded irises, Dutch irises, and foxtail lilies bloom.
- Will you give your bulbs any water? How frequently is your irrigation running?
- Do you want your bulb display to alter each year, incorporating new types and colors, or do you want them to come back year after year without needing to be planted?
- Are there many squirrels where you live? To stop them from digging up your bulbs and damaging your display, concentrate on growing bulbs that squirrels don’t enjoy.
- Make sure the bulbs you purchase appear firm and healthy. As long as the surface damage doesn’t affect the bulb’s performance, it’s acceptable. Our horticulture team at Fall Plant & Bulb Sale can help you with these assessments.
- To learn when, how deep, and what kind of maintenance each bulb needs, make sure you read the directions on the packaging.
- Be prepared to keep your bulbs in a dry, dark location that is chilly but not freezing if you aren’t planning to plant them right away. In a refrigerator that also holds fruits and vegetables, bulbs should not be kept.
- To guarantee proper drainage, which is necessary for all bulbs, amend your soil as necessary.
- The ideal month to plant spring-blooming bulbs in the Denver area is October, when the soil temperature is typically around 55 F. The flower that is already forming inside the bulb may be burned if you plant it too early, preventing it from blooming.
- Bulbs that bloom in the fall should be planted right away to ensure blooms this season.
- In general, plant bulbs with the root zone facing down and the tip facing up, 3–4 times deeper than the height of the bulb. Think of a stack of three to four bulbs. Consult the instructions for each bulb as some are an exception to this rule. Plant them a little shallower if your soil has more clay. They should be planted a little deeper if your soil is sandy.
- Dig the entire area to the necessary depth before planting several bulbs throughout a sizable region. After that, arrange your bulbs as you like and replace the removed dirt. Compared to digging individual holes, this will go considerably more quickly!
- After planting the bulbs, give them plenty of water. The creation of roots, which starts soon after planting, depends on this watering.
- Using fertilizer when planting a seed is not necessary. In the majority of Denver soils, bone meal is not advised for bulbs.
- Leave the leaves to naturally die back after the plants bloom in the spring. By doing this, the bulb receives the most energy from photosynthesis for the bloom of the following season.
- Plant summer-blooming annuals or perennials close to the bulbs to conceal the fading leaves.
- Don’t deadhead naturalizing bulbs; instead, let them go to seed to encourage more growth.
Get plants and bulbs for your own fall garden at the Fall Plant & Bulb Sale this Friday and Saturday, Sept. 27 and 28. Members get 10% off everything they buy! Both the Gardens and the Plant & Bulb Sale are free to enter.
Plant Now
The earliest crocus or snowdrop flowers that appear in the seemingly barren garden each year are for the most part the first indication of spring for gardeners. The real magic lies in how little effort is required to produce this delight; what a wonderful way to motivate us for the upcoming season!
To begin with, remember that a bulb actually houses the entire living flower in microscopic form, encircled by “leaves of stored food. They only require the chilly wintertime dormant period to begin growing. Then they rise as the soil warms. The leaves become active and produce food that is stored for the following season.
Do not forget to handle each bulb delicately. Unplanted bulbs should be kept in a cool, dry area with excellent airflow. As soon as the soil has started to cool, usually in late September or early October, plant them. To avoid the ground freezing and abruptly ending your planting season, don’t wait too long.
Enjoy Later
Because they are independent, bulbs can blossom almost anyplace. Except for tulips, all bulbs require full sunlight; nevertheless, avoid places where there may be standing water. They might decay. Plant in an area that will receive direct sunlight, especially in the early spring, to assure a nice display every year. Under a deciduous tree, where they will receive sunlight before the leaves emerge, bulbs will thrive. Make sure the soil doesn’t dry out during the winter and early spring if the bulbs are planted in a fully exposed area; otherwise, the buds risk drying out. City Floral advises heavy watering once per month.
Planting is simple: put bulbs at the required depth, replenish the soil, cover the area with bulb or flower fertilizer (2 lb/10’x10′ lot), and water well.
Remember the bulbs’ blooming period as you plant them. Between the snowfalls in January, and in February and March, small bulbs. Late March or early April into May for tulips Hyacinths and Daffodils: Most of April
The weather and planting depth do have an impact on these times, but the species always grow in the same order. The snow they might encounter doesn’t harm them.
Snowdrops, glory-of-the-snow, aconite, pushkinia, grape hyacinths, gigantic and species crocus, and aconite are some of the smaller bulbs. Place them three to four deep. Since their blossoms are modest, planting them in bunches makes them look better. They do well in areas that are highly visible or in rock gardens. You risk completely missing them if you plant them all over the yard.
The species crocus is smaller and blooms earlier than the big crocus, which is larger and blooms later. Plant each one four or so deep. Once more, keep in mind that they look best planted in clusters.
Hyacinth is the second tallest category of bulbs. Planting these later bloomers will allow you to take advantage of their wonderful smell, so make sure to do so. They can grow up to 10 to 12 tall and should be planted 6 to 8 inches deep. When grown in a row, perhaps alongside a path, they create a great border.
The tulip is the most well-known flowering bulb. From six miniatures to 24 to 30 late tulips, they are available. Tulips don’t all bloom at the same time; their season varies according to the climate and planting depth. Tulips need to be planted about 6 to 8 inches deep in Colorado.
Botanical tulips are the first to blossom.
Next, the early tulips blossom. Early tulips come in both single- and double-flowered varieties, and they range in size from medium to large. These cultivars are excellent for forcing. (Ask us for our forcing manual.)
Early tulips typically bloom in Denver between late March and mid-April, mid-season tulips bloom between mid-April and early May, and late tulips bloom between early and mid-May.
Triumph Tulips are hybrids of Darwin tulips and early tulips, and they bloom at the same time. They have one standout quality that allows annuals to be planted among them rather early: their leaf ripens and falls off more faster than most tulips. Others force effectively.
Tulips with the Darwin Hybrid variety bloom at the same time as Triumphs. They have blooms that are formed the most traditionally. About 10 days before the Darwins are the Darwin Hybrids. Both have strong stems that are useful for chopping.
The Parrot tulips and Lily-flowered tulips both blossom at the end of the season. The short but spectacular huge late double tulips. The daffodils blossom in April. Technically, the terms “jonquils,” “daffodils,” and “narcissus” all refer to the same class of bulbs. However, “narcissus” is typically used for the clusters of little flowers and “daffodil” for the huge trumpet-flowered varieties. The more resilient of the bulbs, daffodils have the potential to grow in number. Except for the super-mini and micro kinds, daffodils should be planted 3–4 inches to 6–8 inches deep. First to bloom are the big trumpet daffodils, then the short cups and doubles. Narcissus with several flowers are typically the last to blossom. However, all daffodils typically bloom in April in Denver.
Don’t forget about some of the peculiar curiosities that bloom later in the season. Bearded iris, allium, fritillaria (Crown Imperial), and lilies that bloom as late as August.
-Foliage shouldn’t be removed until it has fully matured and turned brown, and fertilizer should be applied in the fall and when leaves first appear.
Can you plant bulbs in Colorado in the spring?
If you have experience gardening, you have undoubtedly learned that creating a beautiful garden requires time, effort, and patience. With all the tasks associated with gardening, weekend gardeners are faced with a tougher challenge. Because you can’t accomplish everything at once, patience is essential, but it also pays off. Half the joy is that you can keep improving your garden design for years to come.
By the time October rolls around, you’ve had some time to spot any gaps that need to be filled. You can remember how eager you were to start gardening in the spring after a few mild days seduced you, if you think back. To guarantee that new plants would survive, however, the soil was probably too chilly to cultivate and the overnight temperatures were too unpredictable. Fill up any dry places with bulbs that bloom in the spring to start the season off early.
All the nutrients required to generate the flowers of the first year are present in the embryos of bulbs, which are live buds. By planting bulbs in the fall, you give them a chance to “winter over” and concentrate their efforts on root development. Compared to planting in the fall and waiting till spring, this results in more profuse flowers. (It should be noted that not every bulb mentioned in this page is a real bulb. Despite the fact that some are corms, rhizomes, and tubers, it is customary to refer to all of them as bulbs.)
A month before the first frost, when nightly temperatures range from 40 to 60 degrees, most gardeners in Colorado start planning their spring bulb plantings in August or September. The goal is to have the bulbs planted by mid- to late-September. Obviously, this is difficult to forecast, but Mother Nature is understanding if we get an early frost. I frequently put off separating and transplanting bulbs on the Front Range until mid- to late-October, and they still flourish the following spring. If you are unable to plant your mail-order bulbs right away, check to see if they are healthy after opening the package, then keep them in the bag (ideally mesh) and store for up to a month in a cool, dry location.
Almost location that has good soil drainage is suitable for planting bulbs. Loosen the soil to a depth of around 8 inches to prepare your bed. If you haven’t tested your soil and the bed isn’t established, now would be an excellent time. pH should be between 6 and 7. You should include organic materials, like as compost or peat, into fresh beds in Colorado’s clay soils.
You should also think about your lighting needs. You can plant early spring bulbs along the borders beneath shady trees because they bloom before the majority of trees begin to leaf out. You should also think about planting some flowers on southern slopes for early flowering and some along northern slopes and in valleys for later blossoming if you want your flowers to bloom all throughout the spring.
I advise following the planting directions when given, but the general guideline is to plant bulbs two to three times deeper than they are tall. (Take note that this rule does not apply to all bulbs, especially summer bulbs; for guidance, consult your local Extension office or garden supply store.)
- Large bulbs should typically be planted 8 inches deep, and smaller bulbs at a depth of 5 inches.
- Plant with the root side down and the pointed side up. Place sideways in the soil if the difference is not clear.
- Dig a hole large enough to fit several bulbs of the same color and variety several inches apart from one another. Bulbs seem more spectacular when grown in clusters.
- After placing the bulbs, firmly press the earth down around them to hold them in place.
- Mulch and garden soil are added after irrigation.
What month is the ideal time to grow daffodils?
Daffodil bulbs should be planted in pots in the spring before they bloom in early autumn, ideally in September.
‘Forced’ bulbs, like the fragrant paper-white daffodil (Narcissus papyraceus), can also be planted indoors in September for Christmas or New Year’s Day blooming. See our article on planting bulbs for the holiday season.
How to plant
Planting bulbs is quick and simple. Just make sure you install them three times the height of the bulb below the surface of the ground. This will make sure they continue to bloom healthily for many years.
For the most impact, plant the bulbs more densely and less deeply for creating temporary spring displays in pots. But after the show is over, plant the bulbs deeper when you transplant them into the garden.