Better Homes & Gardens USA – September 2019

September 2019 | (^71)

HOME GARDEN

It’s bulb-shopping and

planting season—or more

accurately, geophyte-

planting season because

not all dormant storage

organs sold in bulb

catalogs are technically

bulbs. But all are clever

stockpiles of water

and carbohydrates

stashed for when there’s

not a rainy day. Whether

you use technical or

generic terminology, if

you plant tubers and

corms and tuberous

roots and rhizomes and,

yes, even some true bulbs

now, they will provide

years of enjoyment.

But which ones and how?

Some advice:

■ GET ANIMAL-

RESISTANT BULBS

Tired of waking up in

spring to beheaded

tulips and disappearing

crocus? Shop for

animal-resistant flower

bulbs like daffodils,

allium, and snowdrops. If

it’s crocus you are losing

specifically, try Crocus

tommasinianus. They’re

more animal-resistant

than Dutch crocus.

■ TRY BULBS FOR THE

SHADE GARDEN

Is your garden (like mine)

a place of increasing

shade as deciduous

trees and shrubs mature?

Some bulbs, including

Spanish bluebells, winter

aconite, snowdrops, and

trout lily, among others,

manage in that situation;

they do their thing early

then shut down as the

leaves above fill in.

■ ADD EXTRA-EARLY-

BLOOMING BULBS

Minor (mostly small)

bulbs like winter aconite,

snowdrops, and crocus

expand your garden

bloom time to weeks

before the official start

of spring.

■ REMEMBER: EARLY,

MIDDLE, LATE

One of my mantras is

“Early, middle, late.” Don’t

shop only for color or

size in the tulip or daffodil

or other bulb listings.

Consider bloom time,

too, to have the longest

possible succession of

each genus.

■ LOOK FOR

THE WORD

NATURALIZING

Generally speaking,

daffodils will be longer

lived than, say, tulips.

But even some daffodils

will falter in the wrong

climate. Certain ones

prefer the cooler or

warmer ends of their

hardiness range. Given

the right conditions, lilies,

Spanish bluebells, Scilla,

Camassia, snowdrops,

snowflakes, glory-of-the-

smarter bulb shopping

As you voraciously fl ip through bulb catalogs this time

of year, consider this advice from Roach’s book.

snow, winter aconite, and

trout lily stick around.

Scan catalogs for “bulbs

for naturalizing” to find

longer-lasting ones.

■ MIX IT UP;

BE DARING

Go ahead, order a

flowering bulb you’ve

never grown before

(I dare you)—like a foxtail

lily or some oddball

FritillariaÑand order

more than you usually

do for greater impact.

If we don’t widen our

palettes and plant more

lavishly, how will we ever

grow as gardeners?

■ COMPARE

PRICES, BUT READ

THE FINE PRINT

Prices may vary widely

by catalog, but don’t be

fooled. Some deals in

mass-market catalogs

are too good to be true.

Read the fine print about

what size bulb you’ll

be receiving. Another

budget tip: Naturalizing

mixtures (a mix of

varieties) can be good

value if you want a less

formal massed look.

■ PLAN FOR

PLANTS TO SHOW

OFF, THEN CONCEAL,

BULBS

I am inspired by public

gardens like Chanticleer

in Pennsylvania where

careful thought is

given to what adjacent

plant will provide a

foil for bulb blooms

(when the garden is

mostly still asleep).

Examples inspired by

Chanticleer: ‘Angelina’

sedum or Mexican

hair grass. Leave them

standing from last year

through bulb bloom,

then cut back as fresh

(^) growth begins. ■

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BOOK SMART

For more advice,

get Roach’s book

on year-round

gardening, which

has just been

updated after

21 years. ($30;

timberpress.com)

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