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Breck's
U.S. Reservation Center
P.O. Box 65
Guilford, IN 47022-0065
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Bulbs, General Care and Planting Guide Want to get creative with your new bulbs? Here are some basic tips for planning a spectacular bulb display…
* Sketch your bed design on graph paper using colored pencils to get a better idea of the color scheme.
* Try a variety of shapes and colors based on your personal preferences. Don’t just plant in rows.
* If you have trouble choosing color combinations, go to the art store and get a color wheel. It’s easy to use and makes choosing colors a snap.
* Choose bulbs that bloom at different times to create a season-long sequence.
* Don’t skimp! More bulbs always look better than a few sparse ones.
* Mix bulbs in with summer-blooming perennials. They will help hide the dying foliage of spring blooms.
Some bulb planting basics…
Don’t plant your bulbs under aggressive ground covers or dense turf-grass. Make sure you are planting in a sunny location -- at least half a day’s exposure. The best way to confirm this is to choose a site after nearby trees are in full leaf. As a rule of thumb, plant bulbs when the soil temperature is about 60 F at a depth of 6 inches. The cool soil stimulates root growth. Dig out a planting area slightly deeper than needed. Mix some compost into the soil you removed (compost improves drainage and supplies nutrients). Replace the mixed soil until it reaches the proper depth for the size bulbs you are planting. When you place the bulb, you may want to add a small amount of bone meal first. Cover bulbs with remaining soil mix. Mulch if you’re expecting a harsh winter. Always follow the specific instructions that come with your bulbs.
Planting one straight row of evenly spaced bulbs often looks sparse. Planting in quantity in non-linear patterns will always give a richer appearance. This is why mass planting has always been the traditional way to use bulbs. Mass plantings can include dozens or even hundreds of bulbs – especially if you do a naturalizing project. If you don’t have room for mass planting, or need to start small, a reliable way is to plant in clumps of 6 or more bulbs. This is a very attractive method for hyacinths, daffodils and tulips. In the clump, space your bulbs about 4 or more inches apart. If you are ready to try true mass planting, here are some general guidelines for spacing:
BULB SPACING (in.) BULBS PER SQ FT
Daffodil & Hyacinth 6 4-5
Crocus 3 8-12
Tulip
(normal spacing) 6 5
Tulip
(dense spacing) 4 9
If properly cared for, your bulbs will multiply over the years. Keep this in mind if your planted area seems a little thin the first year. Have patience. No matter how you arrange your bulbs, make sure you plant a few extras for cutting. That way, you can fill your vases indoors without disturbing the appearance of your garden beds.
The Best Bulbs for Cutting
In spring, Tulips and Daffodils reign supreme in the landscape and cut-flower arrangements. Both are extremely easy to grow and come in a wide range of colour and form variations to unleash your creativity. Here are just a few of the many outstanding possibilities. (You¹ll find the suggested varieties throughout this website.)
Kaleidoscope Tulip Mix belongs in every cutting garden! This dazzling blend will provide solids and multicolours to complement any arrangement. For big and bold bouquets, Red Dynasty is a must. It is one of the largest, strongest red Tulips ever developed! Also a must is Silver Stream ‹its long, strong stems bear huge primrose-yellow flowers diffused with red. If your taste tends to run toward the whimsical, then the feathery pink petals of Fantasy will help you create uniquely gorgeous displays. Peony-flowering Tulips add romance with their striking, long-lasting double flowers.
As for Daffodils, the unique green eye and sweet scent of Mint Julep are best appreciated when up-close-and-personal in a table-top setting. Early and long-lasting Sunbonnet has wide, white petals kissed with an inner ring of orange that encircles a sunny yellow cup. Try combining it with Breck¹s® Colossal for a stunning bicolour show. A daintily crimped cup of apricot-pink frothed with white makes Apricot Whirl perfect for displaying singly or en masse. Create enduring, exotic arrangements with any of the pink Daffodils.
Don¹t forget to include Hyacinths in your spring bouquets‹a single stem can fill an entire room with its heady perfume. Dutch Irises and Alliums make intriguing vertical accents in arrangements, while Grape Hyacinths are perfect for small-scale displays. Ring a vase of red Tulips with their dainty purple-blue spikes for instant wow-power.
The queen of the summer cutting garden is the Lily. All types have big, impressive blooms, and some have spicy or sweet scents. They come in a wide variety of designer colours arrayed in solid, speckled and bicolour patterns. And with proper care, cut lilies can last up to two weeks or even more in the vase.
Make a statement with Nerone Asiatic Lily ‹it sports three to five deep red blooms that are 6 to 7 inches across! Stargazer is the favourite Oriental Lily among flower arrangers, and with good reason. It produces abundant, scented, upward-facing flowers in an exotic pink, that looks great with anything. If you would like to add white to your designs, the trumpets of Madonna Lilies are pristine and intoxicatingly fragrant.
Using Cutting Bulbs in Your Landscape
If you prefer not to take all of your bouquets from your display beds, where the blooms complement other flowers and foliage plants, you can create a separate garden strictly for cutting. For the most interesting bouquets, also include other flowers that are good for cutting (such as German Irises, Peonies, Roses, Baby¹s Breath, Carnations, etc.), as well as interesting foliage plants. Tuck your cutting garden behind the house or along the back of a border.
If space does not allow a separate cutting garden, group similar plants together into larger clusters. For instance, plant two dozen or more bulbs of one variety together in a mass. That way, cutting a few stems here and there for bouquets will be a treat and not a distress.
How to Cut and Care for Fresh Flowers
Feel free to cut blooms from your flowering bulbs every year. The flower itself has nothing to do with recharging the bulb for subsequent bloom. This process occurs in the leaves (photosynthesis), which is why it is critical to leave the foliage intact and exposed to the sun during a six-week die-back period after bloom. The only exceptions to this rule are the bulbs that have all of their leaves on the same stem that bears the flowers (such as Lilies). In these cases it is essential to leave two-thirds of the stem in place if you would like to get blooms in future years.
It is best to cut flowers in the cool of the morning just as the dew is evaporating. For longest vase life, choose flower buds for cutting that are closed but just about to open, with a hint of the flower colour showing. Cut stems close to their base with a clean sharp knife, but leave foliage intact. For Lilies, leave two-thirds of the stem. Plunge cut stems into a bucket of cool water as you gather additional flowers.
As you arrange your flowers, recut at least an inch off stems (or more, depending on where the flower will be in the arrangement), using a sharp knife. Strip lower leaves from stems so that no foliage will be under water in the arrangement, because this can cause bacteria growth that will shorten the lifespan of your bouquet.
To keep your work of art looking fresh, display it in a spot away from heat (including the TV) and direct light. Remove spent flowers as they wither and fade, and change the water every few days‹especially if it gets cloudy. Tulips are particularly big drinkers, and you may need to add water every day. And don¹t forget to stop and smell the flowers!
- By Jill Jesiolowski Cebenko
Creating Beautiful Arrangements
Whether we arrange flowers for our own personal enjoyment or for appreciation by others, flower arranging is truly an exercise in creative expression. Does your taste run toward the opulent? Or do you prefer simplistic design? Are you more of a van Gogh or a Cezanne? With a bulb-cutting garden at your disposal, you can explore the limits of your flower fancy! Here are a few tips for success:
* Cut flowers look at home in any type of container, from a crystal vase to a vintage tin (slip a water-tight container inside). Try artfully arranging several single, perfect blooms in a collection of bud vases or other small vessels. Use your imagination!
* Create unexpected colour combinations for eye-grabbing attention and to energize a room: hot pink with orange, purple with white, pale yellow with vivid red/yellow stripes, or purple with red.
* Tone-on-tone mixes are elegant and classic: try pale pink with deep rose, or bright yellow with pale yellow.
* For a soothing display, use a single colour for the arrangement but vary the flower shapes and textures. € Before combining Tulips with Daffodils, recut 1" off each stem. Place Tulips in one vase and Daffodils in a separate vase. After 90 minutes, arrange Tulips together with Daffodils in a single vase. (Do not recut stems.) This preparation step will lengthen the life of the display.
* With their large flowers, cut Lilies (Oriental, Asiatic and Tiger varieties) look best in larger containers. For visual balance, place Lily stems in the centre of an arrangement, with most of the flowers arrayed in the lower two-thirds.
* Even single Lily flowers snipped off the stem are versatile. Display them simply propped in a small vase or wine glass or float them (sans stems) in a bowl.
* A florists¹ rule of thumb is that the vase should occupy one-third of the arrangement and the flowers two-thirds to create the most pleasing balance.
Creating a Naturalized Landscape
For a carefree, colorful display yearafter year, let your bulbs go wild! Flowering bulbs will keep your garden ablaze with color when other plants are just emerging or have faded. But some kinds of flowering bulbs‹including the Perennial Tulip Mix and Mixed Daffodils (on the opposite page)‹have extra flower power. Plant these bulbs in a border, lawn, woodland, rock garden or ground cover bed to create a flowering tapestry that increases in beauty, year after year, with little or no attention from you.
Getting Started…
Before deciding where to plant bulbs that naturalize, consider where your landscape needs more color at various times in spring and early summer. By planting a combination of different species and cultivars, you¹ll enjoy a succession of bloom that lasts several months or more. Also consider the garden setting and the effect you¹d like to achieve.
In a woodland garden, incorporate bold, sweeping drifts of early spring color. The moist soils and shaded conditions are ideal for naturalizing Snowdrops, Crocuses, early Daffodils, Grecian Windflowers, Glory of the Snow and Winter Aconite. These plants colonize vigorously and thrive under deciduous trees.
In lawns and the front of mixed borders, plant spring and fall blooming Crocuses, Grape Hyacinths, Daffodils and low-growing Alliums. You also can tuck these bulbs into ground cover beds, such as ivy and pachysandra, for color and contrast.
For rock gardens, entryway locations and other areas where close-up detail is desired, choose small Crocuses, Snow Glories, Winter Aconite, Gemstone Tulip and other small species Tulips, and other bulbs with diminutive blooms. Plant them in small clusters at the corners of beds, in crevices between rocks, or between later blooming garden plants.
Caring for Naturalized Bulbs
Naturalized bulbs require very little care. Simply let the foliage die back naturally to ensure that the plants have had ample time to recharge their bulbs so they can produce flowers for the following year. The foliage can either be removed by hand or left alone to fade on its own. If you¹ve naturalized bulbs in your lawn, don¹t mow until the bulb foliage has withered.
In early spring, top-dress any bulb area with a balanced fertilizer, such as Breck¹s Food for Bulbs and Perennials, to ensure vigorous flowering.
Whether planted in bold sweeping drifts or nestled amongst low-growing plants, bulbs that naturalize can extend your garden¹s bloom period. With little effort, most naturalizing bulbs will grow well and bear many flowers for years to come.
- By Scott C. Scarfone, American Society of Landscape Architects, Wayne, Pa.
Naturalizing With Bulbs Is Easy To Do
Add woodland beauty to your front lawn by naturalizing with bulbs! Mix your spring-blooming favorites together in a bag. Grab a handful and gently toss into the air. Plant them at their appropriate depths where they land. Then come spring, watch passersby stare in awe as your grassy lawn bursts with simple, beautiful color! After your bulbs have flowered, cut their yellowing foliage and stems down at ground level with garden shears before mowing with your lawn mower.
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