…It’s Time To Plant Flower Bulbs

That was my wise-old-man lesson for the day. Keep it in mind, it always works.  An example. If you live in Kuopio, on the North side of the Finnish Lakeland (now that is a place that I would like to visit), then the leaves start falling from the trees months earlier than the trees in, another example, the French Koeur-la-Petit, a village just a little car ride south of Luxembourg. This is always my answer when people ask me what the best time is for them to plant their flower bulbs. Mother Nature tells you through the trees, if the leaves start falling and your bulbs will get a nice little blanket from the trees above them, then it’s time to plant. This method always works. 

If you look at the far south of Spain, you see an example of why it is impossible to say something about any country or region that applies for that whole entire area. In the south of Spain, there are probably even places where the leaves never really fall from the trees. And if that doesn’t happen, it might be better to not plant spring-blooming flower bulbs, as they need that colder period to get going and the cold those areas have isn’t enough to kick-start the flower bulbs that need it.  Little Daffodils in the Sierra Nevada. From this Narcissus bulbocodium, we got our happy little Golden Bells. 

But in that same south of Spain, if you take a fifteen-minute drive north, you enter the higher mountains of the Sierra Nevada, where early October might even get you to catch a cold if you don’t put on your jacket when you go outside. Galanthus elwesii Snow Fox 

There are flower bulbs that don’t mind being planted a little bit earlier in the year, and if they have to wait a little before the leaves start falling, they’ll be perfectly fine. There are always exceptions, with everything in life and in flower bulbs. These Galanthuses would rather be in the ground than being kept in a shed or garage, you can plant them early. When you order one of these exceptions, it will always be very clearly stated when you can plant them. Tulip Blue Diamond and Leucojum Gravetye Giant 

It is mostly the Tulip that needs to wait for colder weather and falling leaves. Tulips only get good at creating new roots when the temperature of the soil starts dropping below 10 degrees Celsius. If the soil is much warmer than that, they will be influenced by active soil life, like small insects and funghi.  A Tulip that is the center of the party: Golden Leo

So I recommend going all out and planting some bulbs… whenever the best time for that has arrived. When people e-mail me to ask me when the best time to plant their flower bulbs is, they almost always ask another question, too: And which varieties do you recommend? You’ve seen a few in this Newsletter 🙂

Last night, I got home well after midnight. As you know, I’ve been on my yearly trip to England, Wales, Ireland, and Northern Ireland, and now I want to go to the warehouse to see how it’s going over there. I’ll tell you more about my travels in the next one… it might just be the longest I’ve ever sent you. Already looking forward to it! Until next week.

Kind regards, 

Carlos van der Veek  Peony Alertie

p.s. Peonies are planted also now in the fall, much better than in spring.