order bulbs now (but why i’m skipping crocus)
SUMMER, NOT FALL, is the best time to order flower bulbs for fall planting (and garlic bulbs, too) to get the best selection, often at an early buyer’s discount price. I focus on animal-proof (or at least resistant) varieties here, like the “rodent-proof” Crocus tommasinianus, above, that as you can see really lived up to their promise of fending off predators. What a gorgeous display! All kidding aside, some bulbs I recommend:
Daffodils, or Narcissus, above, seem to have all-round resistance to nibbling or digging by animals (they are poisonous, and apparently animals know that). The ornamental onions (genus Allium, such as Allium caeruleum, below) have a built-in repellent as well, with that onion-y smell. Camassia and most Fritillaria interest nobody most of the time, in my experience. Hyacinths and foxtail lilies (Eremurus) are also rated for deer-resistance.
Do not even think of growing tulips or lilies (Lilium) without protection. I’d add crocus to that list, as mentioned–even the so-called “tommies,” or at least here on Animal Planet or Wild Kingdom or wherever it is I now live–and frankly I don’t know how I’d protect them from what happened to every single one of several hundred I planted, as in that photo up top.
Among the minor bulbs, better animal-resistant choices include snowdrops (Galanthus); snowflake (Leucojum); winter aconite (Eranthis hyemalis); glory of the snow (Chionodoxa); Spanish bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica); Ornithogalum, Scilla, and Muscari (grape hyacinth). The so-called autumn crocus (Colchicum), with its late flowers, are also apparently not tasty.
Links to some favorite bulb catalogs are listed under Sources on my Resource page, and on that same page a bit higher up, you’ll find links to bulb societies if you want to dig deeper on a particular genus.
slideshow of some favorites
SOME BULBS I GROW, captured in photos–instead of by a rodent!–are in the images below.
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- I have layered in a lot of flower bulbs over the decades here, mostly ones of no interest to animals. Narcissus are all poisonous and therefore pest-proof…
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- …whether medium and large-cup ones, or the little guys…
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- …like ‘Hawera,’ a pale yellow and highly fragrant. Wonderful.
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- The minor bulbs come first, breaking through the leaf litter. Snowdrops, or Galanthus, can come in March if winter has begun to relent.
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- Winter aconites, Eranthis hyemalis, are a favorite, and I am finally getting quite a colony going. Late March or early April into May.
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- The glory of the snow, Chionodoxa (this one’s the species luciliae, with paler blue, white-center flowers) is a self-sower here.
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- I like the darker blue one, Chionodoxa sardensis, much better, but it can be hard to track down some years in catalogs.
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- I am always fascinated by the odd shapes and color of fritillarias, including this little one called F. uva-vulpis.
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- The crown imperial, Fritillaria imperialis, is a proud, regal thing and smells like a skunk from hundreds of feet away. Love it. Nobody seems to nibble on this guy.
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- Wonderful, and curious, aren’t they?
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- The poeticus types of Narcissus, like this ‘Recurvus’ style with reflexed petals, are super-fragrant and late to bloom.
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- I added another animal-proof bulb that’s great for naturalizing, Hyacinthoides hispanica ‘Excelsior’ (also known as Scilla) in 2009. Off to a good start!
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- One of the easiest alliums, or ornamental onions, A. aflatunense, soars above the hostas out front in May. More seem to self-sow each year. No pests pester alliums.
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- Instead of a tight head, Allium christophii’s is large and loose, and silvery-lavender. Lovely.
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- I don’t even know what to say about Allium ‘Hair,’ a drumstick type gone madcap.
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- Allium rosenbachium (purple) and its white form ‘Album’ in a row for cutting. Yes, the bouquets will smell onion-y; a few drops of bleach in the vase is supposed to help. I use them in a display by my door.
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- Allium moly is vivid gold, with nice pleated foliage…and an inclination to be quite prolific, which some gardeners say means not well-behaved in their zones..but fine here.
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- Cut in a little vase on the windowsill, Allium moly is pure sunshine.
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- Allium caeruleum (or azureum, both of which mean blue) is a real beauty.
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- An allium cousin, Nectaroscordum siculum, is perhaps my favorite bulb of all, a self-sower with mauve-and-green dangling bells in June.
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- Closer in, for a look at its intricate coloration.
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- I even like the buds, before the flower’s little bells are set free to dangle.
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- I grow tulips only for cutting; never in the garden beds. They’re planted deep in my raised vegetable garden beds, and dug up when they start topeter out every three to five years. I plant crops right over them. Yup.
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- I have no interest in timid shades. High color tolerance=me. tulips are animal magnets; fence accordingly or be prepared to do battle.
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- There is no lily more compelling than the martagon called ‘Claude Shride.’ The picture tells the whole story. Lilies are delicious to critters, too, and to lily beetles, which I hand pick and squash or drown.
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- A less-wild-colored martagon, shared by a friend from unnamed stock. Lovely in the open woodland in dappled light.
Bulb Profiles and More
Sprinkle hot pepper flakes in with bulbs and on top of the hole where bulbs are planted. This will keep squirrels and other critters from eating your bulbs. It also keeps squirrels out of container plantings.
Hi, Peter. Thank you! Works well on a group or two, but not a big mass. I might try it again someday because I do so like crocus!
I think it might be simpler just to present the crocus on a plate, with maybe a garnish of parsley. But I love them and plant them every year. Some always survive and some get moved around to unexpected places.
This year the deer totally grazed my crocus Thommasianus(?), my hyacinths, Scilla, Spanish bluebells and snowdrops.
The voles work on any alliums I’ve planted. Must be L I deer have different tastes. The daffodils still hold on.
I use milorganite,once the heat of summer begins, not only for the fertilizer, since the plants don’t burn, but the odor keeps many animals at bay.