What are your favourite bulbs?

[TurquoiseBaubles]

I have a new, largish border with many gaps that I want to fill up with bulbs for next year. I know a bit about spring bulbs - I have daffodils, tulips, fritillaries and a few others that I grew in pots last year and will go out in September, but I'm looking for suggestions for tall plants that I can grow from bought bulbs/corms and can go in among herbaceous plants.

The border is east facing - gets sun until about 2 pm, and the soil is reasonably good though a bit shallow as It was originally builders' rubble!

I'll start with Alliums - my mum has a field of Allium Purple Sensation and is desperate for me to dig up spadefuls but I'm a bit wary.

I was going to suggest alliums until I got to the end of your post How about bearded iris?

Hmmm I was going to say alliums too 😂

There’s so many more alliums than purple sensation though. Have a look on J Parker’s website.

Crocosmia (I’ve got multiple colours) and Nerines? Lilies if you don’t have cats visiting the garden (poisonous).

Is there a reason they have to be bulbs?

at all the alliums.

Bulbs because it's a relatively cheap way of filling gaps, while they are still gaps iyswim.

I have some tall red crocosmia (I'm not sure what variety), if anyone has suggestions that would be great. There's a lot of lily beetle around her so I probably wouldn't bother with lilies. Has anyone grown camassia or nectaroscordium - they look great, but I've not seen them in real life?

I tried dahlias and freesias this year but neither were a success. I still hold out (a little bit of) hope for my one and only canna.

Greenhillfaraway, I have this idea that I can buy cheap bags of summer bulbs like I buy bags of daffodils, bung them in, and they'll come up year after year. I suspect I'm in cloud cuckoo land

Light

Narcissus, so cheerful and dainty!
I also have allium moly which is pretty.
@Crockof !

But seriously, why only bulbs? I love hyacinth, but an alomestria, salvation, fushia would do well

Agapanthus? They have a tall spike (or several) and come in purple, white and a mix of both colours. You can buy them as a potted plant, but I got some bulbs from Morrisons last year for £1 each.

Crockof, where I am perennials cost between 10 and 13 euro per pot, so filling a bed is expensive. I've filled up with annuals from seed this year. Sweet pea, nasturtiums and cosmos have done well, pretty much all the perennials I tried from seed either didn't germinate, or went leggy and died.

A pot of flowering Alstromeria in my local garden centre was €14.50 yesterday. I didn't know they came from corms, but if I can get them in autumn I will.

Agapanthus is a good shout.

@TurquoiseBaubles

Greenhillfaraway, I have this idea that I can buy cheap bags of summer bulbs like I buy bags of daffodils, bung them in, and they'll come up year after year. I suspect I'm in cloud cuckoo land

In Feb/Mar I found lots of bulbs for sale at lidl and aldi. The amount per pack ranged from say 3 dahlia bulbs for £1.69 to 50 bearded iris for the same price. I'm a novice gardening and though they were worth a try.

I bought lipins, gladioli corms, an allium mix and a tall, spikey like flower with either white or purple flowers (can't recall the name)- all in their bulb/corm stage. you might find garden centres sell off bulbs at the end of season, or just wait till early next year.

@TurquoiseBaubles

Crockof, where I am perennials cost between 10 and 13 euro per pot, so filling a bed is expensive. I've filled up with annuals from seed this year. Sweet pea, nasturtiums and cosmos have done well, pretty much all the perennials I tried from seed either didn't germinate, or went leggy and died.

A pot of flowering Alstromeria in my local garden centre was €14.50 yesterday. I didn't know they came from corms, but if I can get them in autumn I will.

Agapanthus is a good shout.

That is expensive, are there any plant swap fb groups near you?

Your red crocosmia could be Lucifer. Camassia are lovely. I have blue ones.

I’m not sure that other types of bulbs come in big bags cheaply but it might be the case where you live. Seeds would be a cheap way to raise perennials, plug plants would be another slightly more expensive way, and FB marketplace if you can’t find a swap group.

I’ve bought a lot of plants online in 9cm pots (so cheaper than you might get in a larger pot) and they can grow really quickly. I’ve a couple of rooted cuttings of artemisia that were 10cm tall when I planted them in March that are now 50cm tall and really bushy. Have a look at herbs too. I have several sages in different colours and some fennel but there are others.

Gladioli bulbs nice and tall.. althoughine didn't flower at all this year 🥵

Anemones, poppies, possibly some nematodes to help things like dahlias? Agapantgus, crocosmia, begonia, and some good shrubs - Daphne works well in my east facing border, as does hibiscus and lavender.

Fuschia , my Gladioli haven’t flowered either! I was hoping it was still early as not planted before?! They’re everywhere 😲

My gladioli are stunning. They planted around some still youngish hydrangea (which sadly got singed the week before last).

Are you in S or N Europe? If S, your possibilities expand to include things like Hippeastrum and Clivea. And Pancratium

I bought some calla lily tubers in wilko this spring as they were cheap. Didn’t have much confidence in them, but I now have three gorgeous flowers. I think two tubers was £3.