Ever plant some bulbs in the fall and wonder where they went come spring? Gardening Guy Henry Homeyer has tips for planting those bulbs- and tells us why daffodils are a sure bet.
Henry, what bulbs do you like?
I love all the spring flowering bulbs: tulips, crocus, but I mostly plant daffodils.
Why?
They’re sure winners. So many others are attractive to rodents, squirrels, mice… even if they make it through winter, just when they’re ready to bloom, a deer might come along.
OK… any tricks to planting daffodil bulbs?
They do best in full sunshine. They need good drainage and rich soil. When you’re planting, add some compost to the soil. You can get something called ‘Bulb Booster’, or any slow release organic fertilizer will work just fine.
What if you have some shady spots you want to plant in?
Well you can… probably the best thing to do is get early season daffodils. What they need to do is have their leaves out in the sunshine to recharge those bulbs after blooming; the earliest ones will get all the energy they need before the leaves come on the trees.
Any tips for getting them in the ground?
You can save yourself a bunch of work by planting a group of bulbs in a larger hole, rather than individually. Excavate a hole maybe 36 inches long and two feet wide, then add compost and stir it into the soil, add some organic fertilizer, then place your bulbs pretty close together, fill up the hole and cover it over. You can plant 25 bulbs in 15 minutes.