The official start of fall is still a week away and yet my inbox is jammed with enthusiastic announcements from various nurseries. “OUR BULBS ARE IN!!!” (They’re caps, not mine). “Hurry! Get yours before they sell out!” Where to start? If you’re stalling for inspiration, here are some over-the-top ideas in the Go Big Or Go Home category of fun bulb planting inspirations. Discovered during some of my recent travels, these ideas can be scaled down (or up!) to whatever proportion of wild glamour suits your vision.

Playing with height

The two photos above, shot in May, are of double flower beds at Butchart Gardens, Vancouver Island. I love the ‘more is more’ sensibility so fully realized here. In both situations, the beds in the foreground are filled with tulips and hyacinths in a mix of contrasting colours but all generally growing to the same height. Providing a neat yet no less abundant backdrop are the rear beds which are raised and filled with a combination of white or yellow and white daffodils, all of the same height. Having twin flower beds with the rear bed neatly delineated by its height and quieter colour scheme is a terrific way to present a mad amount of spring bulbs at their most glorious while still maintaining a sense of restraint.

Drama on the lawn

Here’s another idea, shown above, (shot at Butchart Gardens) for a spring bulb planting (in this case, tulips) that’s absolutely amazing if you have a humungous garden and either a couple of hands to help dig and plant or the stamina to make the Terminator proud. But this idea can easily be scaled down in width and length to suit most any lawn sizable enough to be sliced in two. Like the asparagus hedge I featured in a previous post, a linear bed filled with an unexpected plant choice is a simple feature yet delivers outstanding graphic impact.

A charming mishmash

Shown above is a garden bed flanking the front of The Empress hotel in Victoria, British Columbia. The plants are classic spring choices, including pansies, tulips and primulas. What makes this bed so appealing, I think, is its thorough mix. Rather than organizing everything into islands of same-type plants–a dozen tulips here, eight pansies there, etc.–it’s rather like the gardener took their entire spring plant order, threw all the plants into a huge heap, scrumbled them around into a well-blended mix, tossed the entire lot into the air and then planted each plant in the exact spot where it fell. The result is a closely woven tapestry of shape and colour.

Biding time

There are two reasons why I like the above spring garden bed an awful lot. The first is that this bed will evolve over time, with one type of flower (I’m thinking white zinnias) making way for later blooming bulbs for an extra long lasting spring show. The second reason is that the flowers in bloom are of a single colour, creating an elegant look and yet the roundness of the closely-petalled, dome-shaped flowers brilliantly contrast with the slim, vertical leaf blades of the bulbs.

Keeping the show going

Why not let spent tulips or daffodils continue to have a role to play in a spring garden? I know there’s loads of advice on planting bulbs around later blooming and leafing out perennials so that the leaves of the spent bulbs can be hidden. But the bed above proudly features bulbs with all their flowers removed. Destined for bouquets on a banquet table? Who knows. Underplanted with Forget-me-not, the velvety leaves of the bulbs do a wonderful second act.

And another second act, starring seedheads

I shot this stunning combo in July as a reminder to myself that bulbs can keep on giving long after their spring flower show has ended. Alliums, of course, are renowned for adding fireworks in the mid-summer garden with their exploding seedheads. What’s wonderful about this particular pairing of roses and alliums is how wonderful the peachy shades of the roses and seedheads complement each other. This is a silent symphony of shape and texture.

BONUS: Alliums are more than just sparklers for a rose garden. They actually deliver a host of benefits to roses:

• Alliums deter pests that are particularly pesky for roses such as aphids.
• Alliums are great at attracting pollinators which is great for the roses. Bees and other beneficial insects can also help keep rose-eating pests under control.
• Alliums have also been known to help prevent black spot, a fungal disease that can attack roses.

And, bonus to the above bonuses:

• With differing root systems and growth habits, roses and alliums make the best of garden bed-mates. There is no resource competition between the two.

Happy fall bulb planting!