Bulbs

petra
When you say English bulbs do you mean British natives?

I'm so fed up with the fox digging up my bulbs that I've planted 200 english bulbs in pots that will be distributed round the garden in the spring.
This way I can protect them with wire covering.

I've been known to bung ordinary greengrocers onions in the back of a border. White flowers, not showy but look good with something else, especially grasses.
I leave glads in pots with sharp drainage out year after year but most years it doesn't get cold enough to kill them.

A lot of the expensive alliums take many years to get to flowering size. Also you aren't guaranteed flowers year after year.

I'm just back from holiday so only bought my bulbs yesterday.

I've bought alliums, too. They weren't £5 per bulb, I think I got 15 for £3.99. Maybe the expensive ones are rarer varieties?

I hope the weather is good enough this week to get planting. I also bought indoor hyacinths for display round Xmas/NY.

I've just planted up winter hanging baskets/ tubs for myself, DS and DiL, with heathers, trailing ivy, winter pansies and cyclamen. Also bought Iris mixed bulbs to try in tubs. Fingers crossed!
I bought everything, including compost, from Lidl, very reasonable. I got beautiful hydrangeas from there a few years ago and they are thriving.

Some people leave their gladioli in over Winter but I assume they have well drained soil. We don't, so we do as Bluebell says and pull them up to dry and replant next year.

Good idea BB
We bought some Spring bulbs yesterday, but can’t plant yet due to monsoon like weather.Bought muscari, crocus and narcissi bulbs.
shysal looked at alium bulbs but £5 for just one bulb!?

I have just planted my bulbs. Crocus, mini iris, and narcissi. We have loads of squirrels here, so I cover any newly planted bulbs with fine green wire netting and peg it down firmly. That seems to do the trick. Similarly with pots of bulbs I put netting on top and cover with a little more compost.

planted some daffs under shrubs and crocus around tree bases.. in between showers.
But that’s another little job done!

shysal….Gladioli make quite a statement when they're out don't they?
Have you seen the bi coloured ones, they're beautiful!

Thanks BlueBelle.

Yes I bought a packet for first time this year Shysal and had a dozen beauties I will keep the bulbs for next year
I keep all my bulbs from year to year don’t do anything other than keep them in a dark dry room then shove them in the following spring and have lovely shows each year

Does anyone grow Gladioli? A neighbour has some very brightly coloured ones which are magnificent. Do you think they survive in the ground or would they need lifting after dying back? I plan to get some for next year.

Imm6...exactly! Winter has its attractions in the garden, but the wet cold and dark nights get a bit wearing, and I agee the sight of new green shoots is very uplifting!
H. Would like to pave over more of the lawn, but I would miss the green-ness of it through out the winter months.
Not to mention the birds that hop around on it!

I do the same with tulips whitewave pack em in and throw away after!

We did an experiment one year. Let the leaves die down dry bulbs in sun dip in fungicide, then store.
The following year we had around a third come up.
They were lovely but not worth the time and effort put in.
So back to buying every year!

Love spring bulbs. I just wish I could get the snow drops to spread quicker!!

They are wonderful and make for great house decorations when you dry them shysal

In about September last year I planted up a new bed. Amongst the bulbs I chose were some giant Aliums which were wonderful. The seed heads are about the size of footballs and are still providing interest, great value for money.

Just ordered autumn snowflakes and autumn crocus for the scree garden.

I’ve narcissus and iris as well as crocus on order as well.

Nothing has arrived yet though.

I don’t usually bother with tulips until November or December and then get what is reduced as I tend to treat them like annuals and only use them in pots.

Squirrels are my enemy too where there are bulbs, but I'll be putting some in the front where the squirrels won't bother. I too love to see new growth after the stark winter days. Lovely.

We planted 100 tulip bulbs in a new bed and only got 1 flower but lots of fat squirrels.

I didn't think the gardening centres would be selling bulbs yet. A wonderful excuse to pay a visit to my local one (I could spend hours there, looking at the plants and wishing I had a proper garden instead of just a few pots).

Given up on crocus bulbs (squirrels!). Exactly Lemongrove! I have to say I hesitate on planting any bulbs because of squirrels. But maybe I should keep trying ......

Plenty of time yet to plant Spring bulbs.
Last year I planted some narcissi, gorgeous pale lemon coloured double blooms with a very strong and wonderful scent called something like ‘wedding crown’ ‘wedding veil’?
I must look for more to plant this Autumn.
Given up on crocus bulbs ( squirrels!)

Sept/October here, and tulips can be planted in December.

There's more choice of different types if you wait until a bit later on in the summer - I like to put more unusual species into my containers by the front door.