When buying bulbs, choose the biggest, firmest ones, with no blemishes. Bargain packs in supermarkets and DIY outlets may contain vast amounts of bulbs for a tiny price, but not all will flower, and the blooms may not be particularly de luxe.
After buying, get bulbs into the ground as soon as possible – except for tulips, which can wait until November, or even later. If you can’t plant immediately, store in a cool, dry place. Don’t leave bulbs in polythene bags, as these may cause them to sweat and rot.
If you have heavy, clay soil, add grit to it, so that moisture does not sit around the bulb. Or grow bulbs in pots of free-draining loamy compost, and when they flower, place them in gaps in borders, or arrange them artfully on paving, on steps and by entrances. Planting in pots allows you to tuck them out of sight until they have sprouted. Leave the containers where the rain gets them, and keep an eye on them in dry weather.
Planting depths vary (and are usually described on the labels), but generally, the planting hole should be about three times the depth of the bulb. If you have light or loamy soil, a bulb planter saves time. Make sure that the bulb is right way up when you plant it. The shoot on an upside down bulb can waste valuable energy doing a U-turn to head in the right direction. After bulbs have flowered let the leaves die down naturally. Resist braiding them or tying them in knots. The sun needs to reach the leaves in order to replenish the bulbs.