Hi Tunny,

IÂll be interested to see what others have to say, but when I put some in at my last house, I wound up being really surprised by how quickly they were spreadingÂbut only fairly close to where the originals were plantedÂnot all over the yard. I think theyÂre pretty, so I brought a little clump of them along to this house with me, and so far IÂm not having much of a problem with them. Part of the reason I like them is because some years, if they pollinate well, you can get some real pretty seed heads to use in dry arrangementsÂbut you also get the seeds then, and I think thatÂs part of the reason they were spreading as much as they were at the last house. I donÂt seem to have had very good pollination here in the last three yearsÂno pretty seedheadsÂso that may be why theyÂve stayed contained so far.

If they do start spreading more than you want, since theyÂre bulbs, theyÂre fairly easy to dig up to give awayÂno invasive roots where you have to sift the soil to get them out! (But the new bulbs developing from seed will be VERY small!) And cutting off the dead flowers should help some with the spreading if youÂre not into dried arrangementsÂbut they will still increase some every year like all the bulbs do.

I think theyÂd be really pretty with daffodils,
Skybird

After over twenty years mine haven't become a problem. I have 4 different varieties, but mostly the common ones. I've never had to remove any. The clumps get wider and denser, but they haven't popped up far from home.

If you think they might be a problem, you could go with Iris reticulata, which blooms very early - at least as early as muscari. They are tiny, come in blue and purple, don't spread much at all and are bulbs.
I have some in my gardens and some in my lawn.

Mine don't spread much at all, but they don't get supplemental water. I wish they would spread, they are so pretty in the Spring!

Cheers,
Michelle
(Is it Spring yet!?)

I have some in front, but they've shown no sign of being invasive. Actually there are very few there. I don't baby them. They're pretty much left to their own devices.

Mine are spreading but not so fast that I can't keep up with them. Due to their small size I put them close to the edge of a bed and have found them seeding out into the gravel walkway but they grow slowly enough that I'm able to dig & replant them where I want to establish new "colonies". They've been in about 5-7 years and are not taking over. In fact I still want to plant more.

Thanks everyone! Okay so I probably don't need to be too concerned about them...just hard to know because I guess "aggressive" can mean different things to different people. Perhaps they have the potential to spread more quickly because they self-seed as compared to other bulbs that don't (or do they? hah I shouldn't assume then!)? If that's the case, there are some varieties that are supposed to be sterile so that would be something to consider if they start to go haywire. I would be putting them in a large bed with other bulbs + perennials and shrubs but it's up against my house and against concrete on the other three sides so they couldn't go too far. But the whole thing will be on a drip system so they would definitely be getting "incidental" water from other plants.

Cheryl - I was thinking about Iris reticulata - actually they would be my first choice but I did a search on the bulbs forum and a couple of people said they weren't reliably perennial for them so I didn't know if they would be worth a shot. Have yours naturalized well and do you do anything special for them? Do they get water over the summer or not? I also was curious to know if, since they are bulbs, the foliage dies back in the late spring, or if it sticks around like the rhizome-types? Iris have got to be one of the most confusing groups of plants for the uninitiated!! :) Thanks.

I've had my reticulata for quite a few years - somewhere around 20. They do multiply, but very slowly. They've always come back so far. The ones that do best get full sun, regular water and aren't too crowded/covered up by other plants in the spring. The foliage dies down at some point, but by then everything else has filled in so I don't know exactly when.
Some other colours:

{{gwi:1223148}}

One muscari that has barely increased over the years is Muscari latifolium. It stays put and behaves itself:

I found all of these at local garden centers.

Wow, 20 years! That's very encouraging...I just may try some! Thanks. That picture of your latifolium is cool. I'm guessing it was taken in late afternoon sun since the lower "grapes" look almost burgundy. It's a neat variety with the 2-tone effect.

Mine are not invasive. They spread, but in six years, they've only spread out a few feet. Mine bloom in mid April in Utah Valley. The leaves start coming up in fall, along with some crocus leaves. I think these are one of the best things about early spring, and I've never thought of them as a thug!