Bulbs for next year

[wendya]

Guys can anyone help me i hate asking on different threads. I have just bought a load of bulbs from Parkers.

15 anemone Nemerosa, 15 tulip, 50 scilla siberica alba 25 snow drops, 40 nacissi free and 30 free tulips.

The question is when do I plant them as it doesnt tell me? and are they ok in the light, theyre in bags with holes in them? the anemone i hear you have to put in water over night, they look like little sticks, can anyone advise please.

I have aslo bought 4 hardy ferns and 3 parancanthus snow white, but they wont come until October cant wait.

[Ladygardener]

If it were me wendya I'd get the Scilla Snowdrops and Narcissus planted now. The Tulips can wait until end of October, there is a shcool of thought that holding off planting them until then will help prevent Tulip Fire but I have in the past planted them in September with no ill effects, nice and deep in the ground. The Anemone do need to be soaked overnight but Tig is good at growing them and should be able to help. For the moment I would store your bulbs in an airy place, somewhere cool.

[Ron]

ladygardener has about covered it, wendya, good luck with your planting. Are you going to have a go at the Spring has sprung in a container compy? Some bulbs for that would be a good idea.

[andy]

Anemone nemerosa is a woodland bulb so plant it in dappled shade if possible....they can be a bit tricky to get going but are lovely. Try some Anemone blanda if you get the chance....super little bulbs.

Just ordered 6,000 bulbs for work....Lots of Camassias, cyclamen, Geranium, dwarf tulips and Erythronium

[Tig]

wendya soak the anemones overnight and they should double in size and stand a better chance of growing. They prefer slightly damp conditions in their growing season but will cope with dry when they are dormant in summer. They like a soil that is enriched with organic matter (like leaf mould you would find on a woodland floor), this also helps with moisture retention. Plant them sideways rather than flat, about 2" deep and 3" apart. Don't let them dry out once you've planted them and before they sprout in spring or they will dry up again.

[wendya]

Thanks so much all, ok so maybe I will leave the tulips for now Ladygardener, i did notice Sarah Raven always says oct/nov but Parkers didnt say a thing they probably think i know
Tig, thank you is it best to wait or plant them now? you say plant sideways they look like little matchsticks in soil. Im not really sure what you mean, i must take a pic.

Thanks all for the advise much appreciated

[wendya]

I will try it Ron hopefully this year the squirrels will not eat the bulbs. Did try with baskets covered in mesh but they were not a success.

[Tig]

Soak and plant the anemones now wendya, they should bulk out once soaked.

[maglonian]

Sorry to hijack your thread wendya ( ) but thought it better than starting another as it is related.
Is there a minimum depth to a pot suitable for bulbs ? Eg. how much success in say a 5" depth for small bulbs ? Then there's potting medium ... gritty multi purpose or John Innes #2 or 3 ?

[Tig]

As usual the answer is it depends on what you are planning on planting

Some bulbs prefer well drained, others like a bit more moisture. Crocus will do OK in a shallow pot for the first year, and they seem to cope with well drained and fairly heavy compost. Dwarf iris will also do well in a shallow pot in their first year, they do prefer well drained compost. I sometimes start bulbs in 5" pots if they need to be kept from drying out, but will put them in the ground as soon as the weather turns wetter.

[maglonian]

Thanks Tig ,  pain in the backside this bulb planting lark 

[Tig]

It will be worth the effort come spring (that's what I always tell myself as I go in search of appropriate planting spots!)

[maglonian]

Speaking of appropriate planting spots and me wanting to plant a container with daffs and tulips in (and others) ... when is the latest anyone has planted daffodils and still had good success ?

(Still feeling guilty about hijacking this thread)

[Rosefriend]

Sept 14, 2016 5:15:05 GMT maglonian said:

Speaking of appropriate planting spots and me wanting to plant a container with daffs and tulips in (and others) ... when is the latest anyone has planted daffodils and still had good success ?

(Still feeling guilty about hijacking this thread)

If I remember rightly Dutchy bought some left over daffs in early Spring this year and they did well!!

I hate, absolutely hate, planting bulbs!!! The Spring Compy is a godsend to me as planting in a tub is sooo much easier and I do love a good Spring display. I double I would have bothered at all had it not been for the Compy!!

[Dutchy]

Yup they did very well.
I have crocus that will need planting and already feel sorry for myself.... daft old me....

[maglonian]

Thanks both. Just got a few more pots to plant up ... with a small garden I can't afford to lose too much space waiting for foliage to die down

[wendya]

How long do I soak anemome for please just took a pic but not sure how to post from my phone.

[wendya]

Tig, sorry could tag you on my phone.

[Tig]

Lukewarm water to start them in and anything from 6 hours to overnight wendya - depends how big they are. If only thin 6 hours should do.

[wendya]

They are about 3" long Tig, but I keep reading do not plant flat what does this mean? copying and pasting this from Sarah Raven website : For these small-growing anemones, plant them on their longest side, rather than flat, about 2in deep and 3in apart.

I just cant understand do i plant vertical?

[Ron]

I found this onlie, wendya , hope it helps.

[Tig]

When you've soaked them you should be able to see their shape better wendya, if there is a thinner part after soaking then plant them sideways on, with the thinner bit stood up if you get my drift? I wouldn't worry too much, if the conditions are shady, damp and the soil has plenty of organic matter in it they'll thrive. Get the depth right though.

[wendya]

Thanks will soak them soon.

[Dutchy]

When you plant them on their side they always do well as it does not matter which way is up. The corm are always sort of disc shaped so deciding what is the side of the coin so to speak is generally doable.
And yes soaking helps as they sometimes are bone dry when you buy them.

[wendya]

Now all planted. A few dug up in the night time but not eaten. But think someone said squirrels don't like daffodil ? Hope snowdrops and alba are not eaten. Anemome now planted hope I've done it right.
I will leave the tulips for now.

[maglonian]

After noticing a bulb sprouting last weekend, sat in the garden having a coffee I noticed some of the ones in the ground are coming up too, as well as others in pots.

Maybe a silly question but do some spring flowering bulbs come up in October ?
Or have I planted some too early or maybe not deep enough ??
OR I have I slept through a season or two

[Ron]

There were posts about this last year, maglonian , and I don't think there were any problems. When the cold weather comes they'll stop growing and pick up where they left off in the Spring.

[maggy]

I'm laughing here because as per usual I read how to do things after I've done it !! I bought a pack of anemone comes, didn't know to soak them ! Threw them on the soil prior to sticking in my trowel to about 5 cm !! And lost them ! I had to really study to find them as they just looked like bits of clay I don't know which way up they were so it will be a miracle if I see them again .

[Ron]

Oct 13, 2016 20:15:21 GMT maggy said:

I'm laughing here because as per usual I read how to do things after I've done it !! I bought a pack of anemone comes, didn't know to soak them ! Threw them on the soil prior to sticking in my trowel to about 5 cm !! And lost them ! I had to really study to find them as they just looked like bits of clay I don't know which way up they were so it will be a miracle if I see them again .

I'm no expert with anemones, maggy, but I planted some in a container without soaking them and they came up all right. I would think they'd still grow whichever way up they were even if it took a bit longer.

[maglonian]

Oct 13, 2016 19:44:38 GMT Ron said:

There were posts about this last year, maglonian , and I don't think there were any problems. When the cold weather comes they'll stop growing and pick up where they left off in the Spring.

Thanks Ron.  Good to know I'm not going mad ... well maybe a little late for that ... I'll give them a mulch of straw to protect them in harder times.