As the summer season starts to draw to a close, spring may feel like a long way off, but autumn provides the perfect conditions for planning next year’s display. Pick up and plant your spring-flowering bulbs now and your garden will burst into life when the winter begins to fade!
From romantic pastel tulips to naturalised crocuses and wildlife-friendly planting, this year’s bulb trends offer something for every garden.
Discover the latest looks and find inspirations for your garden.
Want more gardening tips? Check out this blog.
Embrace Soft, Faded Petal Colours
Soft pinks, peaches, apricots and creams will bring a romantic feel to your garden next spring. These muted colours look less formal than your traditional pastel planting, complementing fresh green foliage.
Why not try planting:
- Tulip ‘Amber Glow’
- Tulip ‘Artist’
- Narcissi ‘Carice’
- Narcissi ‘Pastorale’
Combining several similar shades creates a soft blended display. Add white narcissi or muscari for a fresh pop of contrasting colour.
Add Drama with Dark Tulips
Deep burgundies, plums and almost-black tulips will give spring borders that edge. Dark flowers work particularly well alongside white, cream and pale varieties.
Pick up:
- National Velvet
- Queen of Night
- Slawa
- Alison Bradley
- Black Parrot
- Purple Crystal
PLANTING TIP: Plant dark tulips in groups for maximum impact. 
Create Natural-Looking Displays
Naturalistic planting has always been an influence in garden design – especially amongst our landscapers! Instead of arranging bulbs in straight lines, plant them in loose groups and watch them spread!
Naturalising bulbs work well through lawns, beneath trees and around already established shrubs.
Our naturalised bulbs include:
- Galanthus (Snowdrops)
- Tete-a-Tete (Narcissi)
- ‘Woodland Walk’ Mix (Narcissi & Muscari)
- Scilla siberica
- Anemone blanda mixes
Gently scatter the bulbs across the planting area and plant them where they land. Choose varieties that suit your garden’s conditions and allow foliage to die back naturally after flowering.
Build a Bulb Lasagna!
You do not need a large garden to enjoy spring displays of colour. A bulb lasagna uses several layers of bulbs to produce waves of flowers from one container.
A refresher on our advice last year: plant your largest and latest-flowering bulbs at the bottom. Add smaller, earlier-flowering bulbs nearer the surface.
Place the bulbs close together without allowing them to touch and make sure your container has good drainage.
Here’s some varieties to start with if you’re lacking in inspiration:
- Bottom layer: Tulip ‘Quebec’
- Middle layer: Narcissi ‘Moonlight Sensation’
- Top layer: Chionodoxa ‘Pink Giant’
Try Successional Planting
Choose bulbs with different flowering times to create a display that changes throughout the season, but is constantly in bloom. With careful planning, you too can enjoy flowers from January into the early summer!
Early colour varieties:
- Snowdrops
- Eranthis cilicica
- Crocus ‘Cream Beauty’
- Iris reticulata ‘Harmony’
Mid-spring varieties:
- Narcissi ‘Tete a Tete’
- Narcissi ‘Thalia’
- Muscari armeniacum
Late spring/early summer colour:
- Tulip ‘Queen of Night’
- Fritillaria meleagris
- Allium ‘Purple Sensation’
PLANTING TIP: Weather and local growing conditions may cause flowering times to vary slightly
Support Local Wildlife
Early spring flowers are vital to pollinators, as they provide nectar and pollen when there are fewer other food sources available. Add colour to your garden while also helping bees and other beneficial insects.
Good choices to include:
- Muscari armeniacum
- Alliums
- Crocuses
- Single tulips
Choose open flowers where possible, their accessible centres make it easier for insects to reach pollen.
Make a Statement with your Alliums
Alliums are important for bringing some heigh and structure to late-spring borders. Their flower heads look striking among perennials and ornamental grasses.
Our tallest varieties are:
- Miami
- Purple Sensation
- Siculum
Plant alliums in repeated groups to create rhythm and movement. They prefer full sun with free-draining soil.
Small Garden? No Problem for Petite Bulbs
Compact bulbs make it easy to provide spring colour to doorsteps, balconies and windowsills.
Available in store:
- Narcissus ‘Tete a Tete’
- Narcissus ‘Minnow’
- Narcissus ‘Jetfire’ (Also early flowering)
- Tulip ‘Red Riding Hood’
Group several pots together for a larger display, you can also move each container into prominent positions as its flowers open.
Rediscover Botanical Tulips
Botanical and species tulips have smaller flowers than traditional tulips. Their informal appearance is great for gravel gardens, rockeries and naturalistic planting schemes.
Popular choices:
- Tinka
- Lilac Wonder
- Hilde
PLANTING TIP: Many botanical tulips will also return year after year when planted deeply in a sunny, well-drained position
Be Bold & Experimental with Colour
While calm, pastel displays remain ever popular, joyful colour combinations are also back this year! Contrasting colours will brighten patios and borders, especially after those dark winter months.
Why not try:
- Tulip ‘Ballerina’ & Tulip ‘Negrita’ (Orange and Purple)
- Tulip ‘Lighting Sun’ & Muscari (Orange and Blue)
- Tulip ‘Queen of Night’ & Narcissis ‘Thalia’ (Purple & White)
Choose two or three main colours and repeat them throughout your display. Keep a bold planting scheme while staying coordinated!
Plant Now for Colour Throughout Spring
Spring-flowering bulbs offer an easy way to transform your garden. Plant them in borders, naturalise them in lawns or layer them in containers. You can follow one trend or combine several to create unique display that is yours.
Visit us to explore our range and find everything you need to start planting! Our staff are always on hand to help you choose suitable varieties for your garden, containers and especially your growing conditions.
Availability of varieties may differ between our Ashford and Barnstaple Garden Centres.