Five tips to plant your flower bulbs

Would you like a sea of flowers in your garden in spring and summer? Then flower bulbs are the perfect answer. You have an endless amount of choice, so you can create a lovely array of different colours in your garden, patio and balcony. There are some that will flower in summer and others than bloom in spring. By planting both, you can enjoy flowers for the majority of the year.
 
We have a number of tips to help you ensure that your flower bulbs live up to their full potential.

Tip 1: When to plant flower bulbs

Summer-flowering bulbs have to be planted in spring. It is important that the weather has improved enough so that there are no night frosts. Spring-flowering plants are different. These flower bulbs (often referred to as autumn bulbs) need to be planted in the ground before the first night frost. This will be between September and December. It is important that the temperature is lower than 10°C.

Tip 2: What is the best way of storing flower bulbs?

Naturally, you want to stock up on flower bulbs in good time so that you're ready to plant them once the time is right. But if it will be a little while until you're ready to plant them, it is important to store the flower bulbs properly in the meantime. You need to make sure that flower bulbs are stored in a dry and cool place, such as a garage, basement or shed. It is important that no mould forms on the flower bulbs due to the humidity. If this happens, let them dry out and then plant them immediately.

Tip 3: Get creative and plant bulbs in a flower pot or planter

Don't have much space but would still like some flowers on your patio or balcony? No problem, you can also plant flower bulbs in a flower pot or planter. You can choose a nice pot or planter, fill it with soil* and plant the flower bulbs.

It's even easier to use a ready-to-use version, where you can have flower bulbs in a flower pot in an instant. For example, you can use the 1-2-3 flowerbulb disc, which is ready to go in just three steps — the name really does say it all!

*Note: It is important to place a layer of hydro grains at the bottom to allow for good drainage. The potting soil is placed on top of this layer.

Tip 4: Plant flower bulbs far enough apart

When planting flower bulbs, how far apart you plant them is an important aspect. Naturally, you want the flowers to have enough space to grow, but also to be close enough together so that there is an overall effect.

The best spacing is 3x the size of the relevant flower bulb. This ensures that the plants have enough room to grow. The depth at which you plant the bulbs also determines how well they grow. Plant them at 3x the height of the flower bulb. Then you will know that you're on the right track!

Tip 5: Mix & match with perennials

Can you really do that? Of course! Flower bulbs are an ideal complement to perennials. Flower bulbs bloom in spring and summer (depending on the variety of flower bulb) and the perennials fill the rest of the space to ensure that you don't have bare spots in autumn and winter. In addition, this combination creates some nice variety.

Please note: When planting flower bulbs between perennials, make sure that you are allowing sufficient spacing between the plants.