Plant now for spring colour
It is time to get your gardening gloves on if you want to enjoy drifts of bulbs come the spring. There are also flowers to plant now that will supply you with some colour as the weather becomes colder
It is always a delight when spring comes round again with all the bulbs thrusting through the soil. The foliage of Dutch iris is with us months before the slender flower buds open to reveal their hidden beauty, while some freesias start to show in the autumn but it will be March before we can enjoy their flowers again.
Spring bulbs arrive in the garden centres during the first few weeks in October as a rule. Sometimes they are loose in boxes but the majority of them come in nets with a descriptive card on the front. Do feel them to see they are firm to the touch and not looking mouldy at all and don’t buy any that are less than perfect.
October is the time to put the first ones in – hyacinths, crocus, narcissus and freesias. The planting depth should be between two and 2.5 times the height of the bulb, so if you are planting them in a pot, you need to find one deep enough to be able to plant at the correct depth. If the bulbs are going to be grown outside, then use a compost for outdoor plants which can stand up to the weather. Keep them sheltered from heavy rains while they are still under the soil. If you have a garden bed then it’s a good idea to occasionally dig up any bulbs that were / left in the ground, like freesias and narcissus, and replant them deeper down in the autumn. Heavy rains can wash away the soil over them, causing them to emerge far too early and topple over in the winter winds, and they just don’t like being staked up.
Local narcissus will be the first bulbs to come into flower along with crocuses, and then comes the rush as everything vies for attention at the same time. How joyous it all is!
Keep a look out for bulbs that are new to you and – try something different such as Triteleia ‘Starlight’ or Ornithogalum arabicum (Star of Bethlehem). The leaves of ornithogalum die before the flowers open.
Plant tulips in November but don’t leave it too late. Make sure the soil is damp before you put them in – bulbs won’t make new roots if the compost is dry. They do need some moisture to get them started.
Tulips prolong the spring season by flowering after the main spring bulbs, but they don’t always come up a second year and it is best to buy fresh ones each autumn. If you like unusual colours then try Tulip ‘Black Parrot’ with its frilly edges or Tulip ‘Gavota’ with deep purple markings on a yellow background.
As the spring bulbs finish flowering in April deadhead them and give hem a feed. It might seem strange to feed after the flowers are finished, but this is the time that the bulb works at making the flower for next year so it needs lots of help and encouragement now. After about six weeks, or when the foliage has turned brown and decayed, you can remove it.
If you are given an amaryllis bulb for Christmas as a flowering plant or in a gift box without any instructions how to plant or look after it, first of all cut off any dry bits of root from the base of the large bulb and choose a pot that can hold the bulb comfortably, leaving about two centimetres of potting compost around the bulb. Use compost that is reasonably ‘heavy’ like peat with some garden soil, as peat on its own dries out very quickly. Plant the bulb up to just below its ‘shoulders’, leaving the top exposed.
The bulb will shoot up very quickly once it starts to grow, and if it is not firmly anchored in the soil it will topple over and spoil the wonderful flowers. Sometimes staking is advisable. Keep the soil moist but not wet. Once the amaryllis flowers appear then the leaves will follow. Cut off the lower stalk when it has died and continue watering the leaves and giving an occasional feed until late summer. They do need a rest period, like most other plants, so let the plant die down and re-pot in the wintertime again when more wonderful blooms may reward you.
There are many other plants, not necessarily bulbs, which will grow through late winter into spring even during the wettest days. Marguerites, as they are known here, are members of the Argyranthemum family and will flower through all but the wildest and coldest winters. Planters of pansies and petunias will cheer the coldest days until spring comes along, and osteospermums and polyanthus will fill your pots with wonderful colours.
Taken from The Potted Garden by Patricia Jordan (£9.95, €17). Available from all good bookshops or call Hellenic Distribution on 22 878000
