A bulb is an entire plant system packed into one vessel, in this case, a small bulb. Once planted in the ground, and exposed to the right temperature environment, you get blooms! It feels like magic.
Bulbs you plant in the fall, such as tulips and crocuses, will bloom in late winter and early spring. These bulbs have a chilling requirement to initiate flowering and should be planted in October through December. Bulbs that you plant in the spring, usually during March, such as lilies and crocosmia, will bloom in the summer. These warm season bloomers don’t require a chilling period.
Below is a list of the most commonly carried bulbs by bloom season. The specific time your bulbs will bloom within the range below depends on when you plant your bulbs, the specific variety, sun exposure and more.
| Winter and Spring Blooming Bulb Names | Bloom Time | Colors |
| Allium | Late Spring through early Summer | Purple, white, pink, blue, yellow |
| Amaryllis | February through May | Red, white, pink, orange, purple, green |
| Camassia | Late April through early June | White, blue, purple |
| Chionodoxa | Late Winter through early Spring | Blue, lavender, pink, white |
| Crocus | Late February through early March | Violet, purple, yellow, white |
| Galanthus | January through March | White, yellow, green, apricot, purple |
| Garlic Hardneck | Late Spring through early Summer | Pink, red, purple, striped, tan, white |
| Hyacinth | March through April | White, blue, purple, yellow, pink |
| Iris (Bearded and Dutch) | Bearded: late March through mid-June Dutch: late Spring through early Summer | Blue, brown, black, orange, purple, white, yellow |
| Muscari | Mid-Spring | Blue, white, pink, yellow, violet |
| Narcissus (Daffodils) | February through May | White and yellow |
| Paeonia | Late Spring through early Summer | Red, white, coral, purple, peach, lavender, maroon, yellow |
| Paperwhites | February through March | White |
| Scilla | February through September | Lavender, pink, white |
| Tulips | Early: March through April Mid-season: April Late: late April through May | Blue, orange, pink, purple, red, white, yellow |
| Summer to Fall Blooming Bulb Names | Bloom Time | Color |
| Alocasia | Spring through Summer | Silver, purple, red, green |
| Anemone | Early Spring through Fall | White, red, pink, purple |
| Asiatic Lily | June through July | Orange, red |
| Calla Lilies | Late Spring through Summer | Black, orange, pink, purple, red, yellow, white |
| Canna | June through October | Orange, red, yellow, white |
| Colocasia | Late Spring through early Fall | Purple, green, black |
| Convillaria | Early through Mid-Spring | White |
| Crocosmia | Mid-Summer through mid-fall | Red, yellow, orange |
| Dahlias | July through first frost | Black, pink, purple, red, yellow, white |
| Daylily | Mid-Spring through Summer | Orange, red, pink, purple, yellow |
| Dicentra | Late Spring through early Summer | White, pink, red, purple, blue-green |
| Echinacea | Mid-June through September | Purple, pink, red, white, yellow |
| Ferns | Late Spring | Copper, green, purple |
| Hosta | Late Spring through Late September | Pink, purple, white |
| Kniphofia | Late Spring through Early Fall | Orange, yellow, red |
| Liatris | July through late Fall | White, pink, purple |
| Lilies | Early through late Summer, maybe into the Fall | Green, pink, white, yellow |
| Lilium | Late May through September | White, orange, red, yellow, pink, purple |
Along with the bulbs themselves, we also carry anything you will need to make planting efficient and simple. Here are some of the best tools, soil amendments and animal repellents to make sure your bulbs grow strong, healthy and beautiful.
A bulb planter is a metal, tapered cylindrical tool that helps you make easy holes for planting bulbs. At Merrifield Garden Center, we carry a standing bulb planter and a handheld planter, each creating the perfect 2½” diameter hole to place your bulb into. Standing bulb planters are helpful when planting a large amount of bulbs and are also less strenuous for gardeners with mobility or back problems. They are tall and have a place to step down, pushing the tubular metal tool into the ground by tamping it down with your foot. A handheld bulb planter is a more cost effective option and will be great for gardeners who don’t mind bending over to use the tool. Simply push the tool into the ground to make the hole where you will place your bulb.
Auger drill bits are metal attachments with rotating helical screw blades that attach to a heavy duty household drill, like a DeWalt. They are great for digging holes for bulbs as the drill does the hard work, making it physically less cumbersome than a manual bulb planter. We carry auger drill bits that are 2¼” and 1½” in diameter and both will create a 2 to 3” deep hole for bulbs. This drill bit creates holes quickly and efficiently and can cut through rockier soil better than manual bulb planters.
In general, we recommend fertilizing bulbs at the time planting, when the blooms start to emerge and as the blooms fade to energize the bulbs for future production. Here are a few of our favorite bulb fertilizers that we carry at all three stores.
Espoma’s Bulb Tone fertilizer blends natural and organic ingredients to create a nutritional mix that will help your bulbs thrive. Bulb tone is derived from feather meal, poultry manure, bone meal, alfalfa meal, greensand, sulfate of potash, and sulfate of potash magnesia. It is high in phosphorus to help with flowering. It can be used on both fall and spring planted bulbs. Check the bag for instructions on how much bulb tone to use on your bulbs and planting beds.
Dutch Bulb Food is a synthetic, granular fertilizer that you can use on your bulbs at the time of planting or on established plants in flower beds. Dutch bulb food will work wonderfully for all bulbs. It’s a well-balanced fertilizer with high phosphate to help with flowering. Dutch Bulb Food includes monoammonium phosphate, ammonium sulfate, urea and potash.
Dr. Earth Bulb Food is certified organic and is great for use on bulbs, edibles and ornamental plants. You can use it on both summer and winter plants in containers or those planted directly in the ground. We recommend using Dr. Earth bulb food at the time of initial planting and then when the foliage of the plant is established and growing strong, before it flowers. This fertilizer contains fishbone meal, bone meal, potassium sulfate, alfalfa meal, rock phosphate and kelp flour. It has high phosphate content to help with flowering.
Vole Bloc contains sharp, ground up stone (also known as expanded slate or shale) that is too sharp for voles to dig through. This product will help protect the roots of the bulbs, creating a physical barrier that repels voles. Add Vole Bloc to the soil at the time of planting. One application will be enough to serve as the barrier as it will not dissolve over time.
Bonide Repels All comes in liquid and granular forms. This product includes all natural ingredients, such as white pepper, clove and garlic oil and are non-toxic to people, pets and children. It will repel animals by both smell and taste. We recommend using the granular form at the time of planting or the liquid form when bulbs are actively growing, prior to blooming (if you didn’t use the granular during planting).
Squirrels are known to dig up and chew bulbs. Luckily, I Must Garden has a squirrel repellent granular form that you can add to your flower beds at the time of planting or on the surface of your soil seasonally. The brand also carries a liquid ready-to-use spray that can be applied to bulb growth before it blooms. This product has all natural ingredients including dried blood, peppermint oil, lemongrass oil, garlic and more. I Must Garden will deter squirrels by its unattractive scent specifically. We recommend reapplying the granules and spray every 2 to 4 weeks. If you’re using the liquid spray, apply it in the morning or evening and avoid the heat of the day given potential heat reactions. Always follow the instructions on the label.
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