Fall’s Buried Treasure Is Spring’s Bloom

One autumn day about 10 years ago, when I was new to outdoor gardening, I encountered a bulb display at the local nursery. With visions of tulips, crocus, muscari and daffodils bursting forth in my garden come spring, I rushed home with an armful of bulbs.

Kneeling among my roses, I dug dozens of holes in the hard Southern California clay, added some amendments and fertilizer and, with great hope, covered the bulbs until spring.

After a drizzly, dark, half-hearted winter, when the sun finally peeked through the clouds, I ran out to the rose garden.

What I saw in the still wet, shiny clay were a number of green plant tips. With the patience of a wise gardener, I waited . . . and waited.

Except for the daffodils that I had sprinkled throughout the garden, nothing grew. I did everything but pull on the plant tips, but they eventually rotted away.

In disgust I dismissed bulbs, except for daffodils, until one day when I saw tulips in containers.

The next spring I ran to the nursery for bulbs, but I also bought pots and potting soil. That spring and every spring since, my garden has been full of potted bulbs.

Although it isn’t impossible to grow bulbs in our soil, planting in containers has benefits. Not only do you skip the time-consuming amending and digging involved in planting in the ground, but planting bulbs in pots also ensures that they don’t drown during a wet winter.

When planting in pots, you don’t need a lot of bulbs to make a statement as you do in the ground, says Jim Kitano, manager of Kitano’s Garden Center in La Palma.

“One pot full of bulbs can be moved around the yard, and it becomes a focal point, whereas you need many more in the ground for the same impact,” he says. “In addition, you can move the bulbs into the house for a short period of time.”

You can layer bulbs in containers, says Matt Hamilton, outdoor buyer for Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar.

“It’s possible to plant bulbs like daffodils, hyacinth and tulips on the bottom layer and crocus, muscari and scilla on the next level and top it all off with annual bedding plants like pansies or alyssum,” he says.

The bulbs will bloom at different times for a long-lasting display.

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Potting bulbs is easier if you keep the following tips in mind.

* Spring- and late winter-flowering bulbs can be planted until Dec. 31. These include tulip, paperwhite narcissus, daffodil, muscari, scilla, hyacinth, allium, crocus, anemone, ranunculus and watsonia.

You should be able to find a good selection of bulbs in nurseries until Thanksgiving; bulbs also are available through mail-order.

Summer-flowering bulbs such as gladiolus, dahlia, amaryllis and lilies can usually be found in nurseries in January and should be planted in winter and early spring.

* Crocus, tulips and hyacinths must be chilled in the refrigerator for at least six weeks before planting. Store in a paper bag or plastic bag with holes and keep away from fruits such as apples, which will emit an ethylene gas that can cause the bulbs to rot.

* Bulbs are prepackaged flowers with the blossoms locked inside. Next spring’s blossoms depend more on bulb quality than on a green thumb. Choose bulbs that are large, plump, firm and free of mold. “If the bulb feels mushy and fragile, it’s not worth putting in the soil,” Kitano says.

* Decide what bulbs you want to grow before picking out a container; what you grow will determine the size of pot needed, Hamilton says.

“The rule of thumb is the bigger the bulb, the deeper it must be planted, although there are some exceptions,” he says.

For big bulbs that grow tall, such as tulips, daffodils and hyacinths, you’ll usually want a terra-cotta pot at least 10 to 15 inches deep, because they need sufficient planting room. It’s also more aesthetically pleasing to see tall plants in larger containers.

Smaller bulbs, such as muscari and crocus, grow well and look better in shallow terra-cotta pots.

* Choose a quality potting soil that is high in sand, which will give bulbs adequate drainage, Kitano says. Sand should be one of the first three items listed on the bag.

* Fertilizing is important if you intend to reuse bulbs because feeding this year will enable the bulb to store up energy for next year’s growth. Add bone meal or bulb food in each planting hole according to package directions.

* Ask for a bulb planting chart at the nursery that will tell you approximately how deep to plant each bulb, as well as which end is up.

* When layering bulbs, place on the bottom layer those bulbs that need to be planted more deeply, such as daffodil, hyacinth, tulip and narcissus. On the second layer put bulbs that like to be planted closer to the top, such as crocus, anemone, muscari and amaryllis.

If you choose to put a bedding plant on top, try not to plant it directly over the bulbs.

* Place the container in full sun. Before growth appears above ground, water about once a week. Once the plant tips poke through the soil, keep the bulbs moist but not overly wet.

If there is a great deal of wet weather, bulbs--even those in containers--are susceptible to rotting. Put the container in a protected area of the garden when it rains for a long period.

* Some bulbs, such as daffodil, narcissus, freesia, anemone and ranunculus, naturalize readily, which means they multiply underground and pop up stronger in subsequent years.

You can leave these bulbs in the container over the year and use the pot for other purposes. Or you can put the container in a dark area until next winter, when you should take it out and water it again.

Bulbs can also be removed from containers and stored, Kitano says.

Wait until the flower heads and leaves have died off. Remove the bulbs from the pot, shake off excess soil and make sure they are firm and free of blemishes. Then place outside in a shaded area for a couple of days until the bulbs form a protective, papery covering. Store in a labeled and dated box or paper bag in a cool dry place, such as the garage.

In the fall, bulbs that need chilling should be put in the refrigerator six to eight weeks before you plant them.

Expert opinions vary on whether saving and storing tulip bulbs is worth the effort. Some say tulip bulbs produce poorly the second year and should be discarded, while others say they can be reused.

* Experiment. “There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to planting bulbs in containers,” Hamilton says. “Try unusual color combinations. You’ll probably like what comes up.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Fall Scene

1. Crown of mums or pansies provides fall color.

2. The top layer of bulbs, crocus and muscari, will form the first and last waves of spring blooms.

3. Tulips, planted in a second layer, will also show in late spring.

4. Daffodils, in the third layer, will appear in mid-spring.

5. Soil and drainage material form the foundation.