Popular spring bulbs
Spring flower bulbs are meant to be planted in the autumn and, if planned properly, can produce blooms from late winter through the end of the spring. Tulips are the most popular of all spring flower bulbs but there a massive amount of flower bulbs that are suitable in planting for spring.
Windflowers, hyacinth, fritillaria, and the Bulgarian ornamental onion are lesser-known spring bulbs but have become increasingly popular in recent years. To make ongoing care quite easy, most of theses spring bulbs are unappealing to common garden menaces such as deer and squirrels.
Autumn is the time to plant most popular spring flower bulbs for blooms that will appear during the upcoming spring. Spring flowering bulbs need to be planted about three or four weeks before the first frost. These bulbs use the cold season to prepare themselves for growing and are ideal in USDA hardiness zones four through eight.
Spring flower bulbs will eventually vary greatly in heights and colors so their uses in gardens and landscaping in nearly unlimited. They are often used for backgrounds, bedding and along borders while groupings or drifts will create dramatic color displays. If proper planning is used they can bloom outside from January through May or June.
Most popular spring bulbs also work well in container gardening as well, with most varieties doing just as well in either setting. When in containers they are often used to provide spot color on patios, decks, driveways, or inside the home as well.
Here are some of the most popular spring bulbs that are ideal for many uses and often found in flower gardens;
- Daffodil: Daffodils produce bright yellow, white, and pink combinations of colors. They are often used, along with evergreens, in naturalized settings and in conjunction with combinations of other spring flowering plants.
- Hyacinth: Hyacinths are one of the most beautiful and fragrant flowers you can plant in your garden. They do not naturalize as well as other spring bulbs so their use is somewhat more limited others. They are very eye-catching when used in borders, containers, and in formal plantings. Hyacinths are also ideal for entry areas as the aroma they emit is very appealing.
- Crocus: Crocus will produce some of the most appealing early spring colors. The winter species will often bloom in early January and continue until late March or early April. They produce flowers in white, purple, orange, yellow, and blue shades and are very common in groupings, along borders, and in many types of gardens.
- Iris: Irises produce excellent cut flowers and are seen in flower gardens throughout the world. They are also excellent for container gardening and produce dainty, orchid-like blooms in almost every color, depending on specific species.
- Tulip: Tulips are the most popular spring bulbs and are very common in landscaping design as well as flower gardens. They are also used in massing, groupings, along borders and in container gardening. Depending on species, both single and double flowers are produced and can found in most ever color. They also produce attractive vegetative foliage that is often used when arranging flowers.
- Glory-of-the-snow: This member of the lily family should be planted 3 inches deep and 3 inches apart during the fall. Glory-of-the-snow produces blue flowers with white centers that are surrounded by dark green foliage. The flowers are arranged in clusters of about five and are 1 inch across.
