found these in my garage (are they toast?)
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I just found 2 bags of crocus bulbs on a shelf in the garage. Bought them back in September, set them down "for a sec," and then fall happened (tomatoes, garlic, leaves, repeat). I know, it's November and most planting guides would say I blew it—but bulbs are WAY more forgiving than the calendar suggests. Here's why: fall bulbs don't need to grow roots before the ground freezes. Each one is basically a packed lunch: food, moisture, and a fully formed flower bud already tucked inside. A dormant bulb can sit in frozen soil all winter and do its rooting later, whenever the soil around it warms above about 40°F. (I've planted bulbs as late as Christmas in my zone 5 garden, and they still bloomed by April.) So the real deadline isn't a date. It's whether you can still get a shovel in the ground. Crocuses are about the most forgiving late plant there is. They need 8 to 15 weeks of cold to bloom, the shortest window of the common spring-blooming bulbs, so mine have plenty of winter left to get what they need. They're going in the ground this week! If your ground is already frozen solid by the time you get around to planting, don't toss your bulbs. Pot them up and park them in an unheated garage for the winter, and they'll still bloom in spring. I walk through exactly how in the new post, along with planting windows for every zone and what to do if you find forgotten bulbs in February. Here's the latest you can plant fall bulbs (and still get blooms in spring) → Seasonal tipsHappy digging, P.S. Not sure how much time you have left? The zone chart in the post shows the ideal window and the latest you can usually push it, from zone 3 all the way to 11. P.P.S. Did you know some bulbs bloom while there's still snow on the ground? Snowdrops, Siberian squill, glory-of-the-snow... These little early bloomers are worth tucking in alongside your late plantings. Eden Brothers has fall bulbs on sale right now for up to 50% off! |
Garden Betty
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