Planting bulbs in turf grass
January 15, 2010
Here's a quick how too on planting bulbs in turf. Originally printed in the Neil Sperry's Gardens E-Newsletter.
My Favorite Things…
Leslie Finical Halleck
I’m pretty busy during the spring season, so I don’t get to spend very much time tending my garden. There are, however, a few keys things Ido during winter to ensure that my spring garden puts on a great show in myabsence! One of my favorite things to do in my own garden is tonaturalize bulbs in turf areas. Clustering bulbs such as crocus, daffodils andother perennial bulbs in your lawn creates a natural woodland look in thespring garden. If you haven’t yet gotten your hands on some springflowering bulbs, there’s still time. You can continue planting certainperennial bulbs through January and early February most garden centerswill still have a selection of these bulbs on hand right now. The key to naturalizingbulbs in turf is to choose tough, easy to grow bulbs that require minimal carein the garden. Daffodils are as tough as they come and look best when clusteredin groups around the base of trees. Small bulbs such as crocus and grapehyacinth can be placed in more open areas of your lawn and are easily plantedinto turf grass.
For large bulbs such as daffodils, you’ll either want to usea round bulb planter to slice out “plugs” of turf, then drop the bulb in thehole and replace the plug. Or, dig out an 8” deep hole to accommodate multiplebulbs. Be careful to retain the section of turf, place bulbs in the hole andthen replace soil and pat the turf down on top. Small bulbs, such as crocus and grape hyacinth, can simply bepressed into the soil, about 3” deep. If your soil is dry or hard, you may wantto go ahead and use a bulb planter to remove a plug of soil and turf. It’s bestto plant a cluster of bulbs together so the planting looks more natural.Generally a grouping of approximately 8 to 12 bulbs looks best, especially withdaffodils.
Most of these bulbs will be up and blooming before your turfgrass begins to actively grow, so you normally won’t be mowing at the sametime. Once your grass begins to grow and the spring bulb flowers have faded,you’ll need to mow around the bulb foliage for a little while until the leaveshave a chance to die down naturally. This will ensure they have enough time tostore food for next year’s blooms. Then, you can mow right over them.
Daffodils and crocus provide such a cheery welcome tospring. Once you drop them in the ground, all you have to do then is sit backand enjoy the show!
Good varieties for planting in turf:
Daffodils Narcissus
Crocus Crocus spp.
Summer Snowflake Leucojum aestivum
Grape Hyacinth Muscari spp.
Spanish Bluebells Hyacinthoides hispanica
Rain Lilies Zephyranthes spp.
Copper Lilies Habranthus spp.
Surprise Lilies Lycoris spp.
Leslie Finical Halleck is a horticulturist and generalmanager for North Haven Gardens in Dallas, Texas.
