I way second that! I've planted bulbs thru December and even into January in a few cases when I haven't had time to get them in earlier--or when it was too cold or snowy to plant them earlier. As long as they're in while it's still cold out, and they have enough time to root before spring they should do just fine! Plant them and then drool all winter waiting for them to come up and bloom next spring!

Skybird

In Ohio, I've been getting some bulbs late, and as I'm wont the more I read about things the more I want to try or the more I change my mind. I've always thought it was good that the bulbs be rather dry and dormant and not start growing in Autumn, but how beneficial is it for them to grow roots in Autumn? I've planted, or moving, or still to plant the last week of Nov, just ordered a few types...... Fritillaria bulbs, Allium bulbs, species type Tulips, Dracunculus. Can't be screwing them up too much, can I?

"Z4.5 I bought half price bulbs first of November. "

In our climate (zone 4/5) in the fall stores sell spring flowering bulbs (I know nothing how it is in zone 8/9). You could, and should, plant the bulbs in the ground as soon as you can after buying them. If you didn't do that yet, plant them now although it is not the optimal time for planting.

Spring flowering bulbs have short period of dormancy after their foliage and roots died down early in the summer. To the inexperienced gardener they may seem dormant until next spring when they start developing visible to the eye above-the-ground growth. The truth is they break their dormancy after only a few months and start rooting again and forming buds for new shoots for the next spring. For sale they are dug up during that short dormancy period and can be planted back any time, in general the sooner the better. Those of us in zone 4/5 who happened for whatever reason to dig up their bulbs earlier in fall know about that. My Crocus or Tulip bulbs are firm, shiny, and growing a thick beard of the new roots already in September.

Planting the bulbs early and allowing them to develop according to their own biological clock is one of prerequisites for their long-term well-being.

That said, the other piece of wisdom is "better late than not at all".

They need a minimum of 13 weeks of winter chill to develop properly and flower. So planting in the ground by 12/1 stll provides plenty of time!! It is not too late at all! And even with later planting, the bulbs will still grow and flower, especially in cold winter or late-to-warm-in spring zones....just a bit later than normal.

I have planted bulbs as late as Thanksgiving without any problems at all.