You can bring them inside in their pots if you really want to keep them over winter, just water sparingly..get them into dormancy. Storing them bare is a PIA, but worth a shot if you have a dark,cool, dry area that stays about 50-60 all winter. They def will not make it in a pot outside over our winters here in Jersey.
You can try Tulips, daffodils, hyacinth for early spring blooms.
Iris, Lilies, Daylilies for spring, early summer blooms.
Even reblooming daylilies for rebloom in the late summer early fall.
You can do Lilies (Lilium) towards the back with smaller everblooming dayliles around it.
Liatris for late summer blooms.
Hollyhocks, Canna (but you'd have to bring that in for winter also or just treat as an annual).
There are many more I am sure others will chime in, I just can't think of anymore right now. :)

Daniella

Thanks for the info.

Because I live in an apartment, I do not have any area that stays 50-60 in the winter. My choices are either to leave the bulbs outside during the winter or dig them up and take them in.

If I do the Dahlias and Gladiolus, what do I do during winter? Just cut off the foliage, dig up the bulb, and store them in a bag in my apt in the winter? How exactly does this work?

Thanks!

Deb

Well, you don't even wanna leave glads out in a pot over the winter, they won't make it.
You may wanna try up on a shelf in one of your closets. Usually they are cooler areas. Just to see, you could take a thermometer today stick it in the closet on the shelf, and check it every 6 hrs or so..write down the temps every time you check. If it doesnt go over 65, it'll work out well. Check the temps now, while its still cold so you can get a general idea for next winter.

What you will wanna do in the fall, after the first frost kills the leaves, cut the stalks down to about 6". Gently dig up the bulbs, now you have that 6" handle to gently pull the bulb out. If you want you can label the bulbs with a Sharpie/permanent marker, write right on them so you know what's what. Now you can cut off excess stem.
You can divide them now if need be, or wait till spring. Go to the Dahlia forum for instructions on how to divide, it's a PIA.
Dip your bulbs in bleach water. only 1 part bleach.
Lay your bulbs out to dry for a couple days, make sure the squirrels dont get them, do not leave them in the hot afternoon sun either, as this will really dry them out.
I feel the best thing to store them in a a mesh bag, like a laundry/lingerie bag. Put some pine shavings in there. What I do is a layer of shavings, throw in some bulbs, another layer shaving, another bulbs, etc.
Keep them in that dark, cool place till spring. You may wanna check on them a few times over winter to see if any have gotten mushy or moldy..if any have, then throw them out, make sure no others are affected.

You dont have to really divide glads, they just pull apart with your fingers basically. I never divide them, the babies don't usually bloom their first year so I leave them attached to the mother. But I also have mine inground, no need to dig them up in the fall if they are in the ground here.

You may be better off just treating them as annuals if you can't find a cool enough spot. Just buy new bulbs every spring. They aren't expensive.
Daniella

I agree... buy new bulbs every year. It doesn't sound like you can accommodate the needs of dahlias and glads. Look into the hardy glads, they may be able to withstand our winters in a pot.

I should warn you that I have had no luck with tulips in a pot outside over the winter. The whole pot freezes solid and thaws over and over, and the bulbs turn to mush. I heard that a pot inside a cooler is better, because the temps are moderated in there.

I'm not sure that bulbs are the best fit for you. Most bulbs bloom for a short period and then die back. Why not fill your pot up with gorgeous annuals? They can get pretty big and will give you nice high-impact color that will last the whole season. Pansies will bloom as early as bulbs, if not earlier.

Of course you could stick a few bulbs in there too :)

Yeah, i'm starting to think that if I want glads, dahlias, and other perennial bulbs i'm going to have to accept that they will die and i'll just replant next year.

What tall florals last a whole season?

Thanks again!

Not much lasts a whole season. you are better off, putting in several plants that have dif seasons of interest.
If you use a big pot you can put in spring bulbs, then summer and fall plants, that way you will always have something. Why are you so interested in the tall plants? Because it is on the balcony and you want it to be seen over the railing? Have you thought about vines? You could put a couple dif vines towards the back of the pot, and have them climb up together, ones with dif bloom seasons. Then your other plants in front of that. BUT DO NOT use morning glory vines, yes they grow remarkably fast, and have pretty flowers, but when grown among other plants it WILL strangle them. There are so many vines you can use, and if you like Morning Glories you can always have them in a seperate pot on the other side of the balcony. If you like that idea make sure you collect their seeds for next year. Nothing is easier to grow from seed than morning glories. I have some I can spare if you want to email me with your address I can mail them to you.
OOh OOhh..you can plant moon flower seeds in with the morning glories, for nightly fragrant blooms!! They go well together, no strangling. Have you ever seen them, they are beautiful! I don't have any seeds of that though. In Jersey our season isn't long enough for them to set seed for me..the frost always mushes 'em. And every year I forget to start them early in the house so I can get seeds from them.
Heres are some pix of one of my barrels..First pic is in May. Foxgloves, Few dif Coleus, Non-stop Begonias, and Vinca Vine. Mind you none are bulbs, but I just wanna show you how you can make one planting last. With the height of that barrel, the foxgloves were aprox 5'. I have another pic that shows the foxgloves but it's not in my photobucket.
This is in May, just planted.
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This is June
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Barrel in July, notice how the foxgloves are finished..
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Barrel in Sept.
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Sorry the pix are so big, I just don't have the time right now to change the size.

Daniella

If you really want tall bright flowers over a long season(who doesn't)I would suggest some of the many varieties of Zinnias readily available. Al