Spring flowering bulbs: Planting now to ensure color in your spring garden
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EmailPlan and plant now for the promise of life after Michigan’s long cold winter and vibrant colors that welcome the spring season.
Fall is the perfect time to plant tulips, daffodils, crocus and other spring flowering bulbs. Spring flowering bulbs are generally quite homely, but these drab, deceiving vegetative organs that are typically brown in color will deliver brilliance in the warmth of spring. Plan and plant now for that splash of yellow, pink, purple and red that welcomes the spring season with bursts of vibrant color and promise of life after Michigan’s long cold winter.
“Flowering bulbs” include true bulbs, corms, rhizomes, tubers and tuberous roots. The differences in these structures are not as important as the similarities they share. While dormant, the bulb holds the whole plant. It is a storehouse for the plant and all the nutrients it needs to begin to grow again.
Some bulbs are cold hardy and able to stay in the ground all winter, requiring a “cold period” to produce their beautiful blooms. Others are considered tender bulbs and need to be dug up and stored in a cool, dry place during Michigan winters.
Spring-blooming cold hardy bulbs include:
- True bulbs like daffodils and tulips. True bulbs have a flower surrounded by layers of their food supply.
- Corms such as crocus and gladiolus, which are a mass of stored food with roots growing from the baseplate and buds sprouting from the top.
- Rhizomes, which are a type of root that stores food. Iris, lily of the valley and ginger are all rhizomes.
Summer-blooming tender bulbs include tubers and tuberous roots. These are an enlarged, food storing part of a root or stem with flowers developing after planting. Examples of tubers are dahlias, caladiums and tuberous begonias. Tubers and tuberous roots are often considered tender bulbs.
Whatever type of bulb you choose, remember to select large, healthy bulbs for the best blooms and the best return on your investment for years to come. Make sure the bulbs are firm and free of mold. Spongy and dried out looking bulbs will not perform well in your garden.
Also take some time to plan for early, midseason and late bloomers. This will give you an array of colors bursting throughout the entire spring season, from the earliest crocus in late March to late tulips in the end of May. With careful planning, you will have color right up to the time you plant you summer annuals. With proper selection, planting and care, bulbs will bring a smile to your face with bursts of color for many years to come.
Read more about spring flowering bulbs in the Smart Gardening Series from Michigan State University Extension.
