Bulbs: How to Grow Them in Your Garden

Bulbs are a cinch to grow because Mother Nature does most of the work. Daffodils, tulips, and many others store food reserves from year to year in weighty roots, making them very adaptable. Only true bulbs have a special type of storage root that makes them different from similar-growing plants with underground storage parts called tubers, corms, or rhizomes. But to the gardener these differences are of little consequence. What’s important, and more fun, is stocking your landscape with “bulbs” for all seasons.

Bulbs are often grouped according to flowering time. Spring-flowering bulbs are usually very cold hardy and include daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, and small species, such as crocus and squill. They are usually planted in the fall, and although they do not show green tips or flower buds until spring, they need a long start because they grow substantial roots during the second half of winter. Summer-flowering bulbs, such as alstroemerias, gladiolus, and cannas are not as tolerant of cold, and many need to be dug and stored indoors over winter in cold areas, or grown as annuals. And just as gardeners in cold climates must dig and store tender bulbs, in warm climates hardy bulbs may not get enough cold to trigger them to bloom. The solution is to chill them in the refrigerator for 6 weeks before planting, and treat them as annuals.

Except for cannas, calla lilies, some irises, and a few others, bulbs grow poorly in wet soil, so choose a site with good soil drainage. Some bulbs are so bumpy or oddly shaped that it’s difficult to tell which side is up, but don’t worry. Even bulbs planted upside-down send their shoots up and roots down. Many bulbs have a dormant period, so remember to let the leaves yellow and die back naturally to allow time for them to store nutrients for the next year.

Study each entry of this category to find out if a particular bulb will thrive in your garden. Then combine it with other plants having similar needs, and the results will be a personal palette of care-free plants for your garden.