WATCH: How to layer your spring bulbs in patio pots
LAYERING spring bulbs is the best way to create a patio pot display that will keep blooming from as early as February all the way through to May.
If you get your “bulb lasagne” right, flowers such as snowdrops will push though in February followed by crocuses in March and daffodils or narcissi at about the same time, finishing with tulips in April and May.
Other bulbs to add to the mix could include grape hyacinths – muscari – or scillas, and anemones, which will keep the flower show going right into late spring or early summer.
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You will need a huge pot to get all those bulbs in if you want to plant them in layers, though, so it’s probably best to just choose three or four types of bulbs that flower at different times for each pot.
Fill the bottom of the pot with some grit or broken crocks for drainage, then add enough compost for the first layer of bulbs to put down roots and place the bulbs in the compost at regular intervals.
Lasagne planting of bulbs - Wyevale Garden Centre
This first layer should be the bulbs that flower later in the year than the others that will sit on top; so tulips, daffodils and narcissi are your best choice.
Cover this first layer of bulbs with enough compost for the next layer of bulbs – possibly grape hyacinths – to put down roots and then cover with more compost and bulbs until the pot is full.
Then just make sure the compost does not dry out and by spring you will have a patio full of colour
Snowdrops or crocuses are the best bulbs to use in the top layer, because they will flower in February or March, giving the bulbs further down enough time to develop.
Bulbs perform best if they are planted in autumn, from late September through to November, but if you want to make your pot colourful in winter you can put some winter-flowering pansies or violas on top.
Then just make sure the compost does not dry out and by spring you will have a patio full of colour.
See below to watch the Wyevale garden centre video on planting a bulb lasagne.
