Thinking about planting flower bulbs? Great choice—they’re one of the easiest ways to get big color with little effort. “Bulb” is a catch-all word, but there are a few underground storage types. True bulbs (like tulips and daffodils) are layered like an onion and already contain next season’s flower inside. Corms (gladiolus, crocus) look similar but are solid—more like a compressed stem that gets used up as the plant grows. Tubers (dahlias, begonias) are swollen storage organs with “eyes” that sprout; think of a potato. Rhizomes (irises, canna) are horizontal stems that creep just below the surface, sending up shoots along their length.

You’ll often see bulbs grouped by planting season. Fall-planted bulbs—daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, crocus—go in the ground in autumn and bloom in spring. Many need a winter chill to flower well, and in most climates they can stay in the ground year after year. Spring-planted (summer-blooming) bulbs—dahlias, lilies, gladiolus, cannas—go in after danger of frost. They flower in summer into fall. Some are tender (dahlias, gladiolus, canna) and may need lifting and storing where winters are cold, while others (many lilies) are hardy and can overwinter in the garden.

Success comes down to three basics: sun, drainage, and depth. Choose a spot with at least half-day sun and soil that doesn’t stay soggy—bulbs hate “wet feet.” Plant most bulbs about 2–3 times as deep as the bulb is tall, pointy end up for bulbs/corms and eyes up for tubers; set rhizomes just at or slightly below the surface. Water well after planting, label your spots, and resist over-fertilizing (a balanced, bulb-friendly fertilizer at planting is plenty). With that, you’ll get reliable, joyful blooms—season after season.

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