My Turn - Planting a river of bulbs

Bulb planting is an act of faith. Faith that a small, round, dormant piece of plant tissue that’s a modified stem, will, when planted, rest, relax and wait until the conditions of spring activate its urge to grow into a flowering plant. Really, a bulb is ingenious. The entire plant is contained within a bulb, a fact that’s perhaps easier to accept than the notion that tiny seeds contain the necessary ingredients for full plants. It does take a bit more effort to actually plant a bulb than a seed since bulbs need to be planted at a depth proportional to their size. In the case of daffodils and tulips, that will necessitate digging a hole about six inches deep.

There are many ways to plant bulbs and as long as they’re planted at the correct depth, the only wrong way to plant them is in a straight line. Many of us have learned this lesson the hard way - that is, spending all the time and muscle required and having the spring bloom look weak and staggered because there are just not enough bulbs in one area to make an impact. Susan has outlined her clump method of planting bulbs here, and I find it to be very effective when you want to coordinate colors in the border or if you just want a punch of color. But there are a couple other ways to achieve a successful and pleasing planting. One is to naturalize bulbs. This was done at Tower Hill Botanical Garden where thousands of daffodil bulbs are planted in the field to great effect. Many of us don’t have the equipment or room in either our gardens or wallets for this method of planting. It does look gorgeous though doesn’t it?

Another method for planting a volume of bulbs, 50 to 100 or more, is to plant a river. Consider that an undulating river, drift, or ribbon of color running through the garden can be done with as few as 50 bulbs. That’s a rather short ribbon and most gardens, even small gardens, can handle a couple hundred bulbs. As you can see, this is a large border and a natural border against a stone wall. Though not close to the house, it can still be seen easily especially because there are so many bulbs in one area - masses show up much better than spots of color.

As to the method of planting, those bulb planters, either the short or long handled variety, just don’t get this job done and are much harder on wrists and hands than a long handled shovel. My rocky patch requires the presence and use of a pick axe, which you see here lying on the ground in the above picture, but don’t let that scare you. Using the correct tool for the job will actually save you energy. I had my doubts but the proof is in the planting. Idug this river initially in 2007 when I planted the first hundred daffodils, along with about 50 species tulips. They’re the pink cupped narcissus, ‘Accent’. I learned a lesson from this planting. The pink cupped are beautiful but they don’t show up from a distance as well as the bright yellow daffodils do. I extended the river in 2008 with the yellow variety you see here. I included large tulips in the bed with the realization that tulips are short-lived, but daffodils will bloom for many years after planting and have the added advantage that critters don’t find them tasty. They’re an investment. I’ll add that planting such a large mass of bulbs means that the dead and dying foliage should be considered since it can’t be removed or the next season’s bloom will be compromised. I’ve added daylilies in front of the river to hide the dying foliage of the daffs. It’s a good companion planting and gives you yet another drift of color in the summer. What method of bulb planting do you employ and are they in the ground yet? It ‘s time.