filling empty spaces

10 years ago

Last year all of the tulips in my landscaping were devoured by rabbits but my daffodils (which were mixed in with the tulips) were untouched and turned out great. After the spring bloom was over I pulled the tulip bulbs out completely (all the way down to the bulb) since I didn't want to have to go through that ordeal again this year.

Rather than trying to figure out where to plant new daffodil bulbs this past Fall, my plan was to wait until Spring and then transplant dozens of potted daffodils (purchased in bulk) from a local nursery. Basically everywhere there is an empty spot my plan is to fill it in with a fully grown daffodil container.

If I go ahead with this plan, what are the chances of the transplanted daffodils coming back up in subsequent years?

Featured Answer

posierosie_zone7a

10 years ago

last modified: 10 years ago

Hi, I think your chances are pretty good. Go for it and enjoy!**

** The following is unsolicited advice from an enthusiast. The above answer is sufficient.

However, consider that the bulbs from the nursery will be typical yellow on yellow types and you could really get some interesting and different varieties this fall from mail order. A sample of the crazy world of daffodils is below.

Here is van engelens split corona mix:

Here is their double mix

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Comments (8)

User
10 years ago
We actually plant many bulbs 'in the green' - ie. as they are actually flowering, or just over...so as long as you can allow the foliage to die down naturally so the bulbs can recoup energy, they should be absolutely fine next season and subsequent years.
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purslanegarden
10 years ago

Doing that way should be fine for returning daffodils.

It seems that bed with tulips and daffodils was intended to be the early bloomers. What other plants do you have there? Other bulbs or annuals could fill out the area after daffodils are gone.
NHBabs z4b-5a NH
10 years ago
For future plans, I try to take photos of my bulbs in bloom so I can look up their location as needed and know where the gaps are. A small camouflaged stake would also serve as a marker. It's a whole lot less expensive to buy bulbs when they aren't in bloom.
User
Original Author
10 years ago
I did take photos last Spring (with tape measurements as well) but did not feel up to it in the Fall to figure out what spots were considered vacant based on my photos. What if I planted bulbs now for NEXT spring. Is that not considered to be a good idea?
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
10 years ago
You can certainly plant out potted flowering bulbs now but its a very expensive way of doing it. Maybe you can find some faded ones which are on sale if you're only concerned with getting flowers next year.
purslanegarden
10 years ago
If price is no object, then yes that way is fine. However, if you're OK that you're not getting flowers this spring, then bags of bulbs are still OK to do, too!

By the way, I don't know what other plants you have that will come up later, but bear in mind as you begin to dig in that area, that if you add other mid and late growing bulbs, you can have plants throughout the growing season.
User
10 years ago
I routinely plant a great many 10 litre pots with spring bulbs...but back in September when we buy them. Working as a jobbing gardener, for customers who want to see blooms all year (while minimising waste from traditional bedding out methods), I always have dozens of filled pots of tulips especially, to pop into gaps...and then simply remove and stash somewhere when they go over (and then it is time to do cannas, dahlias, lilies etc.. So, the long-winded point I am making is that yes, pots of bulbs are a terrific way of filling gaps or making instant (well-planned) displays.