Garden Column for the Salisbury Post

Jean Gillooly-Master Gardener Volunteer

November 22, 2005

     Cooler weather has prompted gardeners to consider planting spring-flowering bulbs. If you dread digging all of those individual holes or preparing beds for mass planting, you might want to consider another method--layering two or more types of bulbs in the same space.

     *First find a partially sunny location and dig a hole twelve inches deep and about two feet in diameter. Remove the soil, break up the clods and mix with 30 to 50% organic material such as composted pine bark. 

     *Second add fertilizer and bone meal or phosphorus to approximately one fourth of the above mix at the rate of 1 teaspoon of fertilizer and bonemeal per bulb to the bottom of the hole. This will eliminate having to mix fertilizer for each individual bulb.

     *Third place three or four inches of this enriched material on half of the bottom of the hole. Sprinkle with a few handfuls of the regular soil mix to prevent direct contact between the bulbs and the fertilizer. Randomly arrange thirteen to fifteen of the large bulbs four inches apart on this prepared half. Cover with the regular soil mix up to six inches from the top of the hole. 

     *Fourth add enough of the regular soil mix to bring the adjacent area up to the six inch mark also. Add two inches of the enriched soil to this area. Again sprinkle the plain soil mix on top. Place the smaller bulbs two inches apart in this area. If desired a third plant or color could be introduced in part of this space. Carefully fill with soil to the top of the hole.  Water the newly planted area to remove air pockets. Add two to three inches of mulch to the top of the bulb planting to help retain moisture.

     This layered arrangement presents two to three color combinations in the same space. For example, Daffodils (yellow), Crocus (purple) and Galanthus (white).

There are many other combination which you could choose when you purchase your bulbs. Be sure to buy only firm and plump ones.

Jean Gillooly is a Master Gardener Volunteer for the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service in Rowan County. For archived garden columns or other information, visit the Rowan County Master Gardener web site at www.rowanmastergardener.com , e-mail Darrell_Blackwelder@ncsu.edu