Planting Bulbs

What a lovely time of year! As I am wrapping up my garden one of my tasks is to plant spring bulbs which always invokes feelings of positive anticipation and makes me look forward to next year when the little surprises will poke their sunny little heads up in my garden.

Here are some steps to getting the most out of your bulbs:

1.  First, place your bulbs.  I usually plant in natural looking groups throughout the garden.

2.  Rake the bark mulch away and dig the soil to below the proper depth for your bulbs to allow room for organic soil amendment.  This helps to improve the drainage crucial for bulbs and adds nutrients.

3.  Add compost soil amendment and bulb fertilizer to ensure healthy and robust bulbs.

4.  Place your bulbs at the proper depth, tips up, roots down and sprinkle with a little more fertilizer, add more compost, fill with native soil and rake your bark mulch back over. 

5.  Look forward to the spring display!

Other hints and tips: Remember that deer love tulips so only plant them where they are protected from the deer.  Otherwise Daffodils, Narcissus, Alliums, Crocus, Hyacinth, Muscari, Frittilaria, Glory of the Snow, Miniature Iris, Siberian Squill and more.  Check out Deer Resistant Bulbs for more info and remember to stop by your local nursery.