How to Properly Care for a Bulb Bed?
Tuber or Bulb?
To start, it's worth refreshing these terms. The foundation of success is planting "the right end up".
Daffodils, hyacinths, ornamental garlic, tulips - all these plants have true bulbs, inside which the plant's leaves, roots and flowers are stored, protected by so-called scales. When planting, the top of the bulb faces upward, the bottom part with roots goes down into the soil.
A tuber differs visibly from a bulb by its elongated shape. If we're planting tubers with eyes (anemones have them, for example), they must face upward.
Tubers with roots, which we find for instance in dahlias, are also planted with the root crown facing upward.
Let's Get to Work!
To make your work go smoothly, I recommend getting the right equipment. A planting trowel and hand hoe will make the work easier, with which you can create sufficiently large holes. An excellent helper is also a bulb basket, in which you can store bulbs and tubers, or it can be used for non-overwintering plants as great protection against rodents.
Before planting itself, carefully check that the bulbs are healthy, without mold, or that they aren't mechanically damaged. We prepare the bed at least 14 days in advance, digging it to a depth of approximately 20-30 cm.
To ensure the soil is sufficiently nourished, we can use Soil for Flowers and Garden Plants, which enriches the soil with humus. Kristalon Start is also suitable, as it provides nitrogen to the soil.
Don't Forget About Treatment
Next comes the treatment of individual bulbs. This protects them from pests, grey mould and fungal diseases. As a treatment agent, we can use, for example, Sulka, which is suitable for garlic protection, or perhaps Kuprikol, or alternatively Merpan, which you simply dissolve in the correct ratio in water and soak the bulbs in it for several hours (according to the instructions on each product).
Then place the bulbs into holes or nests. The general rule states that the bulb should be as deep below the surface as two and a half times its diameter. Bulbs root relatively quickly and should establish themselves by the end of autumn.
Don't neglect plant care in spring either.
You can treat your plants with the popular Plagron, which is a complete fertiliser for the flowering phase of plants, or you can also use Calcium Nitrate as irrigation water, which provides calcium and minerals to your ornamental plants.
The end of September is approaching, so don't waste time and get to work!