Autumn Bulbs for Spring Beauty

a stunning display of color, growth habits and a panorama of nature’s beauty welcoming us to another gardening season. We stop dead in our tracks and marvel at these palettes of plants; and admit it, all of us want a piece of it to make the neighbor’s envious.

Well Fall, Autumn, is the ideal time and ONLY time for planting these spring time displays. In our growing zone, early October through November is the time to get them in. This year almost PERFECT Landscaping has partnered with Spring Displays to offer a very diverse and wide selection of spring flowering bulbs for you to choose from. These bulbs are premium-quality, commercially propagated, disease-free flowerbulbs of the stated size. None of our bulbs have been collected from the wild. All flower bulbs have a certificate of health issued by the United States and Dutch Departments of Agriculture.

On the COLOR BLENDS website you can create an account and then browse the bulb selections by category, color, etc. Saving them to your favorites you can then either email us the list or print it out and APLNJ can then place their order for Fall Planting of your bulbs.

To put in the simplest of terms, “fall” flower bulbs are planted in the fall, grow roots into winter, then sprout and bloom in the spring. These include favorites such as tulips, daffodils, hyacinth and others. Whether you’re an experienced gardener or planning your very first flower bed, bulbs should be a key part of your plans. There’s nothing easier to grow or more rewarding! With spring, summer, or fall bloom times, these effortless bulbs are sure to keep your garden and containers brimming with brilliant colors and intoxicating fragrances month after month, and year after year!

Shown below are just a few of the many varieties and colors of spring flowering bulbs that are planted in the Autumn.

Tulip Carnaval

Best Red Yellow

Batalinii Bright Gem

Amaryllis gervase

Hyacinth House Bayou

Tulip pink cubed

Tulip Black Tie

Chiquita Bordeaux

Tulip Bloom Ska

Tulip American Dream

Daffodil falconet

Tulip Angelique

Tulip Carmen Red

Tulip Critical Mass

Tulip Blushing Lady

Bakeri lilac wonder

Tulip Banja Luka

Beauty of Apeldoorn

Tulip Mount Tacoma

Tulip Gemini II

Tulip Cakewalk

Tulip Big Ups

Striped Squill

Daffodil goose green

If you wish for a display of spring bulbs, go to COLORBLENDS.COM and browse their selections, figuring the amount needed for your bed using the density information and save your order. Then call almost PERFECT Landscaping with your order and we will contact you and then take care of everything from there on out. We will give you an estimate on materials and planting..

Rule of Thumb for Dummies: If the bulb is big (eg. Tulip, Daffodil, Hyacinth), dig the hole about 6 – 8″ (15 – 20 cm) deep; if the bulb is small (Crocus, Snowdrop, Scilla, Dwarf Iris, Muscari, Bluebell), dig the hole about 4 – 5″ (10 – 12 cm) deep.

Step 1: Loosen soil in the planting bed to a depth of at least 8”. Remove any weeds, rocks or other debris. You can mix in compost, other organic matter or slow releasing fertilizer if your soil lacks nutrients.

Step 2: Depending on the bulb, follow the recommendation on the label for planting depth. As a general rule, plant big bulbs about 8″ deep and small bulbs about 5″ deep. Set the bulb in the hole pointy side up or the roots down. It’s easy to spot the pointy end of a tulip; tougher with a crocus. If you can’t figure out the top from the bottom, plant the bulb on its side, in most cases, even if you don’t get it right, the flower bulb will still find its way topside.

Step 3: Now that the bulbs are planted, back fill with soil over the hole, lightly compress the soil but do not pack it. Water to stimulate root growth. There is no need to water continuously unless you live in an area with low precipitation in the winter months.

Plant bulbs in clusters. If you plant one bulb alone, or make a long thin line along the walk, the impact is less desirable. Clusters give a concentration of color for greatest impact. Even if you don’t have enough bulbs for a big bed, small clusters can make a super spring show.

Plant low bulbs in front of high. This is a good general rule for bulbs that bloom at the same time. Of course there are times to break this rule. For example if the low growing bulbs bloom early and the tall bulbs bloom late, plant the tall in front.

Try a double-decker effect.You can plant small bulbs in a layer right on top of large bulbs. If you plant bulbs that flower in the same period you can create an interesting double-decker effect.

Layering
Or you can stagger the bloom time by planting mid- and late-season bloomers together, creating a spring display that blooms in succession, for a whole season of color!

ORDER COLOR BLEND BULBS

For fall planting of bulbs, create and account and select your bulbs at Color Blends and save your list as your favorites. Call us at 201-389-6979 and email us the favorite list of your selected bulbs and we’ll provide you with an estimate of planting for Spring Displays. The open window for planting spring flowering bulbs is limited by nature to early October thru November. If you want them, get them while you can.