Planting flowerbulbs is one of my favorite fall gardening tasks.
I do the planting on crisp, sunny autumn days, imagining how, in just a few short months, my spring bulbs - colorful crocuses, tulips and daffodils - will brighten everyone's winter-weary spirits.

If you plan carefully, the show of bulbs can last from late winter - when the first snowdrops and crocuses emerge - to June, when the lollipop flowers of ornamental onions (alliums) bloom.

Tulips for spring color
The beauty of spring-flowering bulbs is their incredible variety, in size and shape, color and bloom time.
If there's one bulb that seems to personify spring, it has to be tulips. These bulbs are the ultimate visual spring tonic, and there are scores of wonderful varieties to choose from. You can even go for the drama of 'black' tulips.

Attractive lesser known flowerbulbs
Tulips may be the most popular spring bulbs, but there are many lovely, easy-to-grow, lesser-known bulbs.
They include windflowers (Anemone blanda), wild hyacinth (Camassia), Snake’s-head fritillaria or guinea-hen flower (Fritillaria meleagris), Persian fritillaria, (Fritillaria Persica) and Bulgarian ornamental onion (Nectaroscordum siculum).

Fortunately, most of them are unappealing to garden menaces such as deer and squirrels. Click here for an article on these lesser known, unusual spring bulbs.

If you're looking for easy-care gardening, many of these bulbs naturalize well to come back year after year, spreading if they're happy.