Early flowering bulbs such as winter aconites, Cyclamen coum and early crocus bring beautiful bright colours to the garden before daffodils and tulips take over, says Geoff Stebbings.
Here are some tips on how to grow early flowering bulbs (this is a loose term to also include corms and tubers) to keep each year’s display fresh and full of flowers.
Cyclamen coum can always be relied upon. Its flowers are always welcome, whether in white, vibrant cerise or any of the shades in between. The leaves are as variable as the flowers and although always rounded and kidney shaped, they can be green, flushed underneath with ruby, or silvered and any gradation you can imagine.
The best way to buy these plants is in flower but you will have difficulty choosing them because they will all be slightly different and all delectable. These low-growing, hardy plants are best planted in drifts and once established, they will self-seed. The flowers usually begin in January and reach their crescendo in March.
Like cyclamen, Eranthis hyemalis (winter aconite) is an early-flowerer that will grow in chalky (alkaline) soils. Eranthis hyemalis is a dainty ‘buttercup’ which creeps underground and sends up a stem, just 8cm tall, that ends in a ruff of apple-green leaves. They will grow in shade under trees but will be happier if the soil is not too dry.
To make a colourful spring trio, a suitable addition might be Corydalis solida. Grey, glassy stems unfurl at the merest hint of warmth in winter and as they straighten you can see the buds already formed and ready to open. Typically, flowers are smoky pink that perfectly matches the grey, feathery foliage.
The many delightful varieties of Crocus chrysanthus usually flower a few weeks earlier than the large Dutch crocus that flower in March. Beating these by another few weeks is Crocus tommasinianus. This is such a prolific grower and seeder that some people find it weedy but it is too pretty and useful to possibly be considered a nuisance in the garden. One great advantage of this species is that, although they look spectacular, they obviously don’t taste very good because they seem to be ignored by hungry mice and squirrels.
How to Grow Early Flowering Bulbs – Growing Tips
- Always allow the leaves of bulbs to die down naturally. These early bloomers die down quickly so they won’t affect your grass mowing regime too much.
- If you need to move or divide crowded clumps, dig them up and replant them immediately as the leaves are turning yellow.
- Boost displays by feeding bulbs with a high potassium fertiliser, such as a granular rose food, when shoots appear through the soil.
- To establish new colonies, collect the seeds as the pods run from green to straw-coloured, and scatter them on bare soil or thin grass immediately or in autumn. Scilla and crocus may flower in their second or third year.
- Look for cyclamen seedlings crowded around the main plant in autumn or spring and carefully lift and transplant them to establish large drifts.
Keen to find out more about how to grow bulbs? Click here for more bulb advice.
