Now that Fall is here, people are thinking about family get together, holiday visitors, cooking & gift giving.  Thinking about your garden planters and next Spring is not even a vague notion.  But, as you will read, now is the time to be thinking about planting up your garden bulbs. 

It only takes a bit of planning to assure that next Spring when you least expect it colorful flowers will start shooting up from your garden planters.  So, what is the first step?  How about deciding what flowerpots you want to plant the bulbs in.

Clean out a summer planter or how about purchasing that one pot you have had your eyes on for some time now!  Either way, make sure that the pots you select are deep enough to bury the bulbs into, making sure they are completely covered with potting soil. Azalea pots are shorter than a standard flowerpot but they work well.  A drain hole is also important.  That way the bulbs don’t sit in standing water and possibly rot.

Planting fall bulbs in containers is similar than planting them directly into the soil.  What’s great is that you can really pack a bunch of bulbs together creating a colorful potted display when bloomed.   Try to plant the bulbs 6” deep with the pointy end facing up and the roots down.  Group them together for a huge display or space them for a sparse display.  Try to keep the bulb count odd not even.

Cover the top of the clay garden pot with mulch to protect the bulbs while they over winter.  You can use leaves, peat moss, pine needles or a mulch product from your local garden center.  That’s it.  Not all that difficult.  So, if you plan NOW think about what you will have next Spring!