A Little Cheat with Spring Bulbs

Though warm weather seems to have arrived early here in Southern Ontario, I remind myself that we are only entering the second half of April. Not two years ago we had a snowstorm in the third week of the month. 

This spring we had really pleasant weather up until the end of March when strong gusts and a sudden dip in temperatures made working outside rather unpleasant. At night, the thermometer dipped below zero degrees Celsius. Though it's warmed up once again there is no predicting that the fine spring weather will last.

Over the last couple of years, I've been experimenting with options that can handle the blustery weather we sometimes have in April. I've discovered that there are a few tricks that winter-weary Canadian gardeners can put to good use. 

The daffodils with flower buds in the second week of April.

For guidance as to what to plant, I look to my garden for clues. If the hyacinths and daffodils have flower buds in amongst a good few inches of green growth, it tells me it's safe to think about using pots of forced daffodil and hyacinth bulbs to fill my empty flower pots. 

Tulips in the second week of April.

Generally speaking in the month of April, it's usually a bit early to think about using forced pots of tulips in my container plantings. Again, if I look to my garden, the growth of the tulips is always well behind that of the daffodils. If the vast majority of tulips aren't showing more than a couple of inches of green growth, that tells me it's better to hold off for a week or maybe two before I think about putting pots of blooming tulips outdoors. This year spring is exceptionally mild and I think gardeners in my zone might easily get away with using pots of forced tulips outdoors.

When hyacinths are tightly closed it can sometimes be a challenge to guess their flower color. White flowers have lime green buds. Purple flowers have flower buds that are inky-green.  Green buds that have a dusty rose cast will be pink.

When the month of April proves to be a really cold one, I like to shop for pots of forced bulbs that have tight flower buds that are just beginning to peek up over short green foliage. If the weather remains cold, the bulbs slow down and hold back their flowers. Even though the arrival of fully open blooms may slow, the forced bulbs will still be a little ahead of the regular bulbs planted in the garden.

And as well as being the safest choice, less developed flowers will last a little bit longer than flowers that are already at their peak.

Here's a step by step:

•When I get my pots of forced bulbs home, I check to make sure they are well-watered (so often I find plants at the grocery store are as dry as can be).  Next, I ease my bulbs into the cold by putting the pots outside during the day. 

• For the first few nights, I bring the flowerpots onto our enclosed porch each evening (as an alternative, you could also place them in an unheated garage or even in the trunk of a car. Just be sure to remember they're in the back of your car before you head out!) 

• If it's super cold (below zero Celsius), I might even bring the bulbs inside for the night or cover them (horticultural fleece or even an old sheet will do).

I often plant the bulbs as they are right in their pot. 

• Once my pots of bulbs have acclimatized to outdoor temperatures, I plant them up. This can be done in a couple of ways. You can sink the bulbs, pot and all, right into your container planting. This makes it easier to lift them out once they've finished flowering. 

Alternatively, you can remove the plastic pot and plant the bulbs directly into your container planting Don't worry about teasing out the roots. Leave them as they are unless you want to break up the bulbs and plant them individually.

Companions for Forced Bulbs

Cheerful pansies are one of the first annuals to arrive at garden centres. They're pretty affordable and can handle cold temperatures like troopers. If I can find them, I prefer flats of smaller plants because they are the most economical. 

Ranunculus

Pussy Willow branches and pink primula on the right.

Other annual options you might consider could be primula, alyssum and ranunculus. Ranunculus may object if the temperature gets really cold, so you might want to cover them if the weather changes for the worse.

Placing three or five Pussy Willow branches in the centre of my arrangements is my favourite way to add some height to my spring containers. Other options might be Red or Yellow-twig Dogwood or Curly Willow branches.

Other Ways to Use Forced Bulbs

Last fall we were so busy with interior renovations and garden projects, there was little time to plant spring bulbs. If like me, you didn't get around to planting bulbs in the fall, there is still something you can do. 

If, for instance, your garden is looking a little green, you can always inject a little instant color by planting a few pots of forced tulips in amongst your perennials. The tulips will look good for a couple of weeks while the perennials around them continue to develop and move into their bloom phase.

Forced tulips are not reliably perennial, so this is just a quick fix. Once the tulips have finished flowering, add the spent to your compost pile.

As well as filling flowerpots, you can also use forced bulbs in window boxes.

Every spring I tell myself to take pictures and make notes so when fall arrives there is no guesswork as to where to add new bulbs. Despite my best intentions, the spring season is always so busy I never seem to get around to that important note-taking. As a result, I find myself struggling to remember where there were holes in my bulb planting schemes every fall. 

Last spring I tried a new idea that was fairly successful. I filled some of those bare spots that needed bulbs with the spent daffodils and hyacinths from my container plantings. 

A pot of forced daffodils was transplanted into the garden last year and has come 

back again this spring quite nicely.  

Despite the wisdom that says forced bulbs won't return, I have had decent luck getting forced hyacinths and miniature daffodils to return the following spring. Forcing bulbs to bloom indoors is hard on them. Placing them into an outdoor setting where they are allowed to follow a normal cycle improves the odds they will return the following spring.

 Once the flowers have started to fade, I remove the bulbs from my containers, cut off the blooms and plant them in the ground at a depth suitable for the type of bulb. It's very important to allow the foliage to remain exactly as it is. The foliage will feed the bulb that produces next year's flower. 

Not every forced bulb returns, but I count it as a bonus when bulbs that gave life to my containers return for a second show.

P.S. The thermometer dropped last night and we awoke to a blanket of snow. On the plus side, it has already started to melt.

Our white magnolia was gorgeous this year. One woman even stopped to take a picture.

Pink Star Magnolia, Magnolia x loebneri 'Leonard Messel'

Avoiding Common Problems with Spring Bulbs

I did this post up for Hometalk and thought I might repeat it here as well:

Q: Squirrels are digging up and eating my tulips bulbs! What can I do?

There tend to be lots of squirrels looking for an easy meal in my backyard every fall. Here is what I have learned to do to prevent them from adding my tulips to the dinner menu:

1. Do not place your bulbs on the surface of the ground while you dig the hole to plant them. Squirrels have a good sense of smell. You might as well put up a sign, "Tulips planted here. Please dig." Instead place your tulips in a basket or plastic bucket while you work.

2. Don't make it easy for squirrels to dig up your bulbs. Plant tulips deeply. Forget the little hand trowel and go get a shovel. You are more likely to dig to the proper depth with a shovel. On average tulips should be planted to a depth of 6-8 inches. (As an added bonus tulips planted deeply are more likely to bloom reliably year to year.)

3. After you dig down and place your bulbs, backfill the hole and firm down the soil really well with your foot. Most squirrels will go for food buried just under the surface of the soil. If the little beggars do have the nerve to try to dig for your tulips, at least you have made it difficult for them by planting deeply and compacting the soil. Most squirrels will move on to much easier quarry.

4. Disguise the area where you planted your tulips by covering the surface with mulch or leaves as a final way to hide your buried treasure.

5. I have never resorted to repellents, but if you have squirrels that are determined pests, you may want to try an organic repellent (available at your local nursery). I have also read that red pepper flakes sprinkled on the surface of the soil are a great organic deterrent.

6. If all else fails, plant bulbs that squirrels don't like to eat. Examples include: daffodils, alliums, scilla and hyacinths. (Note: I have had squirrels dig up my daffodils and discard them uneaten on the surface of the soil, so I have also learned the hard way to plant my daffodils deeply.)

Do you have a great method of deterring squirrels from eating tulips bulbs? Please share in the comment section below!

Tulip 'Angelique'

Q: Last spring's bulbs produced only foliage with no flowers. Where did I go wrong?

1. Most tulips only bloom reliably for a year or two so you may have done nothing wrong. If you want a longer lifespan from tulip bulbs try Darwin or species tulips. Darwin hybrids not only have big, showy flowers, they are known to bloom from 5 to 7 years. And unlike their more flashy hybrid cousins, species tulips are long lived and will naturalize when planted in a sunny, well-drained spot.

2. Make sure to double check the light requirements before you plant your bulbs. Tulips, for instance, need full sun. Sunlight feeds the foliage and that energy is stored in the bulb to produce next spring's flower. If your tulips are planted in shade, the bulbs may not have stored sufficient food to make flowers.

3. Deadhead after flowering. If you don't remove spent blooms, tulips will put all their energy into producing seed instead of storing food for next year's flowers.

4. Do not remove foliage after the flowers fade. Allow the foliage to die down naturally so the bulbs will have a chance to store enough nutrients to produce next spring's blooms.

A mix of Daffodils and Narcissus from last May

5. Poor blooms on daffodils may mean that the bulbs have become crowded and need division. Dig up daffodil clumps following the spring bloom time, separate individual bulbs and replant them several inches apart.

6. As daffodil bulbs age the "mother" bulb multiplies each year. The mother bulb eventually dies and it sometimes takes the offspring bulbs a few years to reach flowering size. To encourage the young bulbs to mature, apply a granular high potash feed and liquid fertilizer each spring after flowering.

An Allium up close and personal

Q: Deer are treating my spring display of bulbs as an all-you-can-eat buffet. What can I do? 

Try planting bulbs that don't appeal to deer: grape hyacinth, Siberian Squill, daffodils or alliums.

Q: What should I look for when buying bulbs?

Look for firm bulbs that show no signs of being shrivelled or soft. The larger the bulb the larger the flower- is a good general rule.

Q: When is it too late to plant bulbs?

1. Ideally, I think it is a good idea to get your bulbs planted in September/October.  That being said, I notoriously snap up bulbs at clearance sales in late October and often get them into the ground as late as mid-November (my garden is Zone 6).
But when is a bargain not a bargain? Late fall weather is often unpredictable and there have been occasions when the ground has frozen before I could get my clearance bulbs into the ground. I learned to limit my clearance bulb purchases to only those I know I can plant immediately.

Q: Can I leave potted bulbs outside all winter?

This is another lesson I learned the hard way. Last year I left potted bulbs outdoors and by spring they all had turned into a soggy, rotten mess. In colder zones like mine, it is best to put potted bulbs in an unheated garage or shed. Keep an eye on them to make sure they are damp, but not wet. In warmer zones (Zone 8 or higher), you can leave them outdoors all winter.

Paperwhites

Q: How can I force bulbs for inside the house?

Paperwhites are one of the easiest bulbs to force and do not require a period of chilling. In recent years, I find that most other types of spring bulbs are readily available in stores and are so darned affordable that I don't go to the bother of forcing them myself. If you do want to try to force your own however, most bulbs can be forced if you refrigerate them for a period of 10-15 weeks in a paper bag. When placing your bulbs in the fridge, make sure your bulbs are not stored near fruit or vegetables which can emit an ethylene gas that is harmful to bulbs.

Q: Can I replant forced bulbs outside in spring?

Most forced bulbs won't bloom again as they have used up all their energy. I have however, had some luck with forced hyacinths purchased in late winter. I remove flowers when they fade, keep them in a sunny spot and continue to water the foliage. When the weather warms up to above freezing, I move the hyacinth pots outside and let them acclimatize to the outdoor temperatures. Then I remove the bulbs and plant them in the garden. Some have come back the following year. Have you had any luck planting forced bulbs in your garden?

Please share any other bulb planting tips you may have! We'd all love to know what has 
worked in your garden.