The planting of spring bulbs such as daffodils, crocus and tulips can begin as early as late August, nudging into September, but the majority of us tackle this job from October onwards. This month, we complete the planting of our annual bulb display so that by the end of November (provided it goes smoothly), everything is in.
January is still not too late to plant tulips as the soil conditions haven’t yet begun to change as spring approaches.
This year we are changing things by upping the number of planted pots and scaling back the bulbs in the borders. The reason for this is that several key areas normally planted are being re-worked this winter and won’t be completed until the spring, but there are also some areas where the bulbs we have planted in the past struggle to be seen, especially amongst the exuberant fresh foliage of the perennial planting. We felt that the visual impact is often most convincing where the bulbs are grouped en masse be it in pots or formal lines where they are treated like cut flowers.
Make sure the quality of your bulbs is good; they should be firm and free from disease. With every new season we always plant fresh tulip bulbs, but in Holland, where most of the UK’s imported tulip bulbs come from, the harvest this season has been poor so expect some fluidity in terms of what is and what isn’t readily available.
When the bulbs have well and truly finished flowering in late spring/early summer you can lift and dry them in readiness for replanting in the autumn. This has very mixed results and is often mediocre at best, especially when your tulip bulbs are planted in large pots.
Most bulbs don’t come back strongly and are best treated as an annual indulgence. All our potted tulips once finished are added to our compost heaps, so essentially nothing is wasted and goes back into the garden in due course.
Use a good quality compost when planting up pots of bulbs. If they are smaller, rockery plants, such as species of tulips or snowdrops, add a healthy amount of grit mixed into the compost to ensure that any excess water drains away.
A top dressing of grit on top of the planted pot will help keep the compost free from algae and liverwort growth that so often rears its opportunistic head when bare compost is around for any length of time.
Layering bulbs is a great technique when you have very limited space; you can grow a range of bulbs in the same pot or container.
You might opt for a layer of early flowering spring crocus, a layer of compact daffodils and the grand finale made up of tulips. Plant according to the depths of the bulbs with the largest going in first and the smallest (in this case the crocus) going in last.
Planting bulbs in the ground is comparatively easy and once you’ve decided where they’re to go it’s a case of getting the correct depth by working on the principal of two-three times the height of the bulb. Apply this principal to whatever bulb you’re working with.
It’s easy to be lured by a whole range of bulb planters when it comes to planting but, frankly, I’ve always preferred being on my hands and knees with a robust trowel. For the heaviest, most compacted ground a trusty metal bar works well to create a small vertical channel. This can then be pressed down firmly with your foot once the bulb is pushed into the space created.
Tom and his wife Abi run their plant and nursery garden business, Abi and Tom’s Garden Plants, at Halecat in Witherslack, and Grange Plant Centre at Grange-over-Sands. Tom trained at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh and Kew. abiandtom.co.uk
Common name: Miscanthus
Size: 0.8-1.2m tall
Site: full sun or light shade
Hardiness: hardy
Description: unlike many of its cousins this is a superb, compact Miscanthus that is good for the smaller garden or a grass that could be convincingly grown in a larger pot or container for several seasons without it looking out of place. The rounded mounds of attractive narrow leaves are covered in masses of delicate buff white flowers. The winter colouring to the stems is special with tones of burnt orange and yellow. It is easily propagated by dividing established clumps in the spring.
Common name: Japanese Maple
Size: 3-4m x 4-5m
Site: full sun or light shade
Hardiness: hardy
Description: this is a sizeable acer that is best grown in the ground or an extremely large pot. Its fiery autumn colours at this time of year are among the best and hang around for a reasonable amount of time before the wind pulls them away from their branches. Pruning is essentially not required and acers in general are best left alone to form their own natural shape. If, as a young tree, a sucker from the rootstock or a wayward stem develops these should be removed immediately.
Common name: Oregon Grape
Size: 2-2.5m tall
Site: full sun or shade
Hardiness: hardy
Description: this is one of my favourite evergreen shrubs. I lived in Berlin when I was ten and an abiding memory was the masses of yellow flowers from the Mahonias that peppered the gardens up and down our street in winter. They prefer a well-drained soil and grow best in the dappled shade of a neighbouring tree or shrub. They naturally want to grow as tall as they are wide, but you can prune and guide the growth to suit your needs.
Common name: Blue flowering Sage
Size: 0.8m-1.2m tall
Site: full sun or light shade
Hardiness: half hardy
Description: this is one of the best purple-blue flowers you can grow in the garden. The bright green slender leaves are aromatic, slightly downy and corrugated with pointed ends. From June-November the stems are covered in large, deep purple, tubular flowers with black centres. I overwinter potted plants in our unheated greenhouse and bring them out in the spring. The pots can be ‘plunged’ into the border or grouped with other potted plants for a fabulous summer display.
