Planting Summer Bulbs

In the northern parts of the country, you have two approaches to planting summer bulbs such as Canna, Gladiolus, and Dahlia.

Start Indoors For Early Bloom - For earliest bloom in the northern zones, start these roots or bulbs indoors about 4 weeks before the last spring frost. This technique works best for larger Cannas, large-flowering Dahlias, Elephant Ears, and just any other summer bulb you want to have in flower earlier.

Plant the bulb or root in 6 or 8 inch pots using a soilless mix. Whether your bulbs are from last year’s garden or newly purchased this year, plant them so that they are just completely covered, roots down. Do not plant them too deeply. It is better to err on the side of too shallow.

Once the bulbs are planted, water them well. This is the signal to the bulb that “dormancy time” is now over and it is time to get a life. At this stage, you don’t need to give your bulbs any light so keep them in the basement or some other place that is not cold.

As soon as new growth pops up treat them like houseplants and move them into good indirect light, not direct sun light. Keep them watered, but allow them to dry out between waterings. Twice a month, apply a water-soluble fertilizer at half strength.

You don’t want to put these plants outdoors in the ground until your soil temperature is 65°F, but you can put them outdoors a week or so before that time during the day as long is it gets no colder than 50°F. This will get them accustomed to the outside and when they are finally planted into the soil, they can let it rip.

Plant Outside For Normal Timing - The easier method is to simply plant summer bulbs or tubers directly in the ground well after danger of frost is past and when the soil temperature is at least 65°F. This will be about the same time for planting corn and tomatoes. In some cases in the more northern areas, this approach might lead flowers coming late in the season or even be missed. If that happens, then next year you will want to start them first indoors.
 

Mark spring bulb plantings by using color-coded sticks

It's not too early to be thinking about planting spring-flowering bulbs. I start planting in October, but now is the time to mark the planting spots in the garden that will be left bare when annuals are removed.

This year, I'm using bamboo skewers to mark the spots. These long, thin sticks are easily shoved deep in the soil and stay put until I finish planting, unlike Popsicle sticks. And, bamboo is slow to decompose, so they can be left in place over the winter.

When planting a variety of bulbs, such as daffodils, tulips and crocus, the sticks can be easily color-coded using vegetable dye purchased in the cooking section of the grocery store. Using a tall, narrow vase or water glass, mix a tablespoon of dye with a couple ounces of vinegar. When the porous wood has absorbed the dye, remove the sticks and spread them out on newspaper to dry.

Jell-O also can be used to dye the skewers. Just add enough vinegar to bring the level of the liquid to 4 inches in the glass.

Bamboo skewers can be purchased at most grocery stores, but I found mine bargain-priced at a dollar store.

You don't need to plant hundreds of spring-flowering bulbs to make an impact. I plant in groups of six, spacing the bunches 2 to 3 feet apart. Six clusters make quite a splash in a gray spring landscape. Because I treat my tulips as annuals, this year I'm going to experiment with planting early varieties directly into the grass. These early bloomers will be up and blooming before the grass needs cutting, and when the blossoms are spent I'll just cut the tops off. To plant, I'll sink my narrow-bladed poacher's spade into the turf, rock it back and forth, and (drop)in a bulb. When mixing more than two colors, I increase the numbers in my clusters from six to 12 to get a good color mix. If you make up your own color blends, be sure the bloom times of the bulbs match so they all flower at the same time.

If the word “bulb” came up in a word association test, nearly anyone would immediately respond with “daffodil,” “tulip,” or “crocus.” But this group of plants is something of a catchall category that contains more than just the spring-flowering species with which we are so familiar. ‘Bulbs” includes plants that grow from true bulbs –lilies, daffodils, tulilps, and hyacinths to name a few. But it also includes ones that arise from corms (such as crocuses), rhizomes (cannas), tubers (tuberous begonia), and tuberous roots (dahlias).

Hardy vs. Tender Bulbs - To confuse matters even further, bulbs are often grouped into two general groups: hardy bulbs and tender bulbs, a distinction made on the basis of the plant’s ability to survive the winter outdoors all year round. Hardy bulbs, such as daffodils and crocuses, can be planted and left in the ground year after year, exactly like perennials. Tender bulbs can’t withstand northern winters and must be dug up , stored indoors and replanted in spring after danger of frost has passed, much like annuals.