Out walking I saw so many bulbs some are at the end, others in full bloom. In my area the Daffodils and the Tulips are opening or are ready to open this week if the weather stays dry and warmer.
Some of the bulbs you will see around my area.
If you want to plant bulbs the recommendations are September to mid October when the ground is 16C ( 60 F). You can plant them into November if the ground is not too frozen.
I have read you can layer bulbs. You put bulbs that grow at different times at different depths so you can have bulbs all season. From my experience it is better to plant bulbs in groups, helping them to hold each other up.
Starting bulbs indoors, I start mine in lava rocks and glass. I also like the net cups for growing, it lets the roots grow without the plant sitting in the water.
When they get roots I start to give them fertilized water.
When they are done flowering you can dry them out for a week then layer them with hay, newspaper, moss, sawdust or anything that keeps them safe and drier.
Garlic bulbs can be planted in the fall and the spring. You will have a different end product. A spring garlic clove will give you lovely greens, they are a bit milder and can be sautéed in a stir fry. Gallic scape recipe. Because it takes 9 months for a new bulb to form from a clove you need to plant them in the fall garlic for cooking cloves or to be able to have enough for the next season.
When you plant them in the spring you will need time in the fridge for 4 to 8 weeks. Many plants need this cold to be able to grow. It tricks them into thinking they went through winter.
When you plant garlic in the fall you want to do it 30 days before the first frost. Because they have no roots. You can cheat your garlic roots, put them in a container with marbles, lava rocks, rocks then put water in over whatever you choose. Then put the base of the clove in the rocks and within a week or 2 you will have beautiful roots! Normally it takes days to germinate roots.
If you plant them before your first frost then they get that dark quiet time to rest till spring. You want to put them 2 inches past the bulb. If you get very cold winters you will want to put some straw on the top to keep them from freezing. Some garlics are less cold tolerant.
Garlic is a great thing to plant between other plants. If you have deer and elk, planting garlic around anything you hope to not be eaten will help deter the animals from eating your good plants. As I have seen, butthead squirrels will likely dig them up for you! They are helpers!
You can also crush the cloves, soak them in water and make a natural pesticide that can be sprayed on once or twice a week if you get rain. Garlic pesticide spray
What bulb or flowers catch your attention? Hope you have a great week.
This is where it starts 