Taylor’s Top 10 spring flowering bulbs

1. Daffodil (Narcissus) Tete a Tete 

Tete a Tete is multi-headed, short flowering and great for pots or borders, flowering in March to April. It’s a strong grower and flowers from various bulb sizes. Generally, the bigger the bulb size, the more flowers per bulb you will get from Tete a Tete. A classic planting combination with Tete a Tete would be blue Muscari which gives a stunning display in pots or borders.   

2. Snowdrops (Galanthus) 

Who doesn’t love to see a carpet of Snowdrops in February? There are several different species to look out for including Flore Pleno which have attractive double flowers. We’d recommend planting with Winter Aconites (Eranthis) for a beautiful display of white and yellows. 

3. Allium Purple Sensation 

Alliums are great statement border flowers. They look fantastic flowering up through herbaceous perennials such as Nepeta. Allium Purple Sensation is a great performing variety with decent size blooms in May and June.  

4. Crocus Large Flowering Mixed 

Large flowering Crocus are extremely versatile and great for naturalising* in grass where they will multiply and spread each year. They are also fantastic in pots or borders. Mixtures of large flowering Crocus are the most popular format offering great value and a simple spring solution. 

*What does naturalising mean? These are bulbs that return every year. They self-seed and propagate themselves naturally. Once you have planted them, you don’t have to do anything; leave the bulbs in their position after flowering to allow them to naturalise themselves. 

5. Daffodil (Narcissus) Naturalising Mixed 

This variety of daffodil is a good solution for those after a larger quantity of bulbs as they are assorted varieties that will all flower, multiply and come back year after year.  

6. Daffodil (Narcissus) Minnow 

Minnow is the next best shorter flowering Narcissus after Tete a Tete. It is a little taller (25cm) with daintier, fragrant flowers and lots of them per bulb making it ideal for planting in pots, we recommend near your house to make the most of the fragrance. The flowers have cream petals and a small yellow trumpet. Minnow can be naturalised in borders or in grass where it will flower, multiply and come back each year. 

7. Tulip Queen of Night 

Tulip Queen of Night has dark and dramatic satin, almost black flowers. Tulip Queen of Night is classed as a “Single Late” Tulip; this group of Tulips are typically very tall and are some of the last Tulips to flower (usually late April and into May). The dramatic colouring of Queen of Night makes it a great Tulip to use in combination with other varieties. A long-established planting partner would be to combine with a taller white flowering variety such as Antarctica, but Queen of Night also looks stunning when paired with pink varieties. 

8. Tulip Red Riding Hood 

Short stemmed, reliable and with beautiful foliage, it’s always a popular choice. Red Riding Hood was always thought of as a “rockery tulip” but it is great for fronts of borders. The most common use of Red Riding Hood is for planting in containers either on its own or paired with other spring flowering bulbs in a layered planter. A classic layered planting recipe would be Tulip Red Riding Hood, Narcissus Tete a Tete and Crocus Large Flowering Mixed.  

9. Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) 

Bluebells are always popular, with their fantastic ability to spread and multiply in gardens. Bluebells are typically associated with woodland, being well suited to partly shaded areas or beneath deciduous trees. They are equally at home in borders at the base of shrubs where they will quickly multiply, coming back and flowering year after year.  

10. Crocus Species Mixed 

The second Crocus mix in our top 10, made up a mix of different varieties that flower earlier than the large flowering crocus and being a little shorter. These are superb for naturalising in grass where they flower nice and early before the first cut of the spring. They will multiply and spread and flower every year.