COMPANION PLANTING

Plant in Fall, bloom in Spring

To take full advantage of what Mother Nature has to offer in your garden all year around you have to plant a few flower bulbs. They are the very first to bloom during the last dreary days of Winter and announce that Spring is coming again in your neck of the woods. With a bit of planning and selection you can easily extend the joy of having Spring flowering bulbs in your garden from a few weeks to several months. It is also easy to see how combining bulbs with perennials creates a harmonious relationship where each supplements the other without one being a dominate factor. The fresh colors and texture of the emerging foliage of perennials offers unique opportunities for contrast or complimenting colors with flowering bulbs. (This combining or contrasting of colours between different plants is called 'color echoing' and is an important way to tie plants together in the overall design). An added benefit is that the new growth of the perennials will hide the dying foliage of the bulbs once they have finished flowering! And not long after that of course most perennials themselves will bloom, thus smoothly extending the sequence of flowering plants for you to enjoy.

It is easier than you think. Not sure where to start yet? Click the other tabs above for a few ideas and suggestions. Call them 'recipes' if you want.

Flower Bulbs Within the Same Family

For combination plantings of various flower bulbs within the same family (result: unique colour arrangements):

• Hyacinth orientalis 'Carnegie' (white) with Hyacinth orientalis 'Delft Blue' (blue) and with Hyacinth orientalis 'Gypsy Queen' (light orange).
• Muscari armeniacum (blue) with Muscari latifolium (bicolor blue with dark blue) and with Muscari aucheri 'White Magic' (white).
• Narcissus large cupped 'Accent' (white, orange-pink cup) with Narcissus large cupped 'Pink Charm' (white, pink cup) with Narcissus large cupped 'Pink Pride' (white, peach-pink cup) and with Narcissus large cupped 'Salome' (white, salmon-pink cup).
• Narcissus large cupped 'Delibes' (yellow, orange cup) with Narcissus large cupped 'Flower Record' (white, yellow cup, red edge).
• Narcissus trumpet 'Dutch Master' (yellow) with Narcissus trumpet 'Magnet' (white, yellow cup) with Narcissus trumpet 'Mount Hood' (white).
• Tulips darwin hybrid 'Pink Impression' (pink) with Tulips darwin hybrid 'Apricot Impression' (apricot) and with Tulips darwin hybrid 'Red Impression' (red).
• Tulips double early 'Abba' (red) with Tulips double early 'Monsella' (yellow, striped red) and with Tulips double early 'Monte Carlo' (yellow).
• Tulips fosteriana 'Orange Emperor' (orange) with Tulips fosteriana 'White Emperor' (white) and with Tulips fosteriana 'Yellow Emperor' (yellow).
• Tulips fringed 'Crystal Beauty' (red) with Tulips triumph 'Shirley' (white & purple).
• Tulips lilyflowered 'West Point' (yellow) with Tulips single late 'Queen of Night' (dark purple-black).
• Tulips single early 'Purple Prince' (purple) with Tulips triumph 'Rems Favourite' (white & purple) and with Tulips triumph 'White Dream' (white).
• Tulips single late 'Maureen' (white) with Tulips single late 'Queen of Night' (dark purple-black) and with Tulips single late 'Renown' (pink).
• Tulips single late 'Menton' (salmon) with Tulips single late 'Queen of Night' (dark purple-black).
• Tulips triumph 'Barcelona' (dark pink) with Tulips triumph 'Rosalie' (soft lavender pink) and with Tulips triumph 'Ronaldo' (maroon).
• Tulips triumph 'Bastogne' (red) with Tulips triumph 'Leen van der Mark' (red & white) and with Tulips triumph 'Inzell' (white).
• Tulips triumph 'Dreaming Maid' (violet-purple, white edge) with Tulips triumph 'Red Lips' (red & white) and with Tulips triumph 'Passionale' (purple).
• Tulips triumph 'Passionale' (purple) with Tulips triumph 'Shirley' (white & purple) and with Tulips single late 'Queen of Night' (dark purple-black).
• Tulips triumph 'Purple Flag' (purple) with Tulips triumph 'Yokohama' (yellow).

Flower Bulbs of Different Families

For combination plantings of various flower bulbs of different families (result: unique colour arrangements and/or extended flowering period):

• Anemones blanda 'Blue Shades' (blue) with Muscari aucheri 'White Magic' (white).
• Hyacinth orientalis 'Carnegie' (white) with Narcissus cyclamineus 'Jack Snipe' (white, yellow cup) and with Tulips single early 'Sunny Prince' (light yellow).
• Narcissus jonquilla 'Baby Moon' (yellow) with Muscari armeniacum (blue).
• Narcissus jonquilla 'Sailboat' (white, cream cup) with Muscari armeniacum (blue).
• Narcissus large cupped 'Salome' (white, salmon-pink cup) with Tulips single late 'Pink Diamond' (light pink).
• Narcissus triandus 'Thalia' (white) with Hyacinths orientalis 'Woodstock' (burgundy).
• Narcissus trumpet 'Dutch Master' (yellow) with Tulips fosteriana 'Red Emperor' (red) with Muscari armeniacum (blue).
• Tulips kaufmanniana 'Showwinner' (red) with Crocus vernus Mixed Colors.
• Tulips parrot 'Roccoco' (red & yellow) with Anemones blanda 'White Splendour' (white).
• Tulips single early 'Apricot Beauty' (apricot-salmon) with Chionodoxa Luciliae (light blue, white centers).
• Tulips single early 'Apricot Beauty' (apricot-salmon) with Hyacinths orientalis 'Blue Jacket' (dark blue).
• Tulips triumph 'Calgary' (white) with Muscari armeniacum (blue).

Flower Bulbs with Perennials

For combination plantings of various flower bulbs with perennials (result: unique texture arrangements, color contrast and/or extended flowering period and dying bulb foliage invisible):

• Allium aflatunense (lilac-purple) with Papaver orientale 'Patty's Plum' (purple) ('Oriental Poppy').
• Allium giganteum (lilac-purple) with Hosta 'Sum and Substance' (yellow-green foliage) ('Plantain Lily').
• Allium karataviense 'Ivory Queen' (ivory white) with Aster macrophyllus (pale blue) ('Large-leafed Aster').
• Allium moly (yellow) with Geranium magnificum (lavender-blue) and Geranium sanguineum (purple) ('Hardy Geranium' or 'Cranesbill').
• Camassia leichtlinii 'Caerulea' (light blue) with Hemerocallis 'Stella D'Oro' ('Daylilies').
• Fritillaria imperialis 'Lutea Maxima' (yellow) with Doronicum orientale (yellow) ('Leopard's Bane') and Artemesia schmidtiana ('Silvermound').
• Hyacinth orientalis 'Jan Bos' (reddish-pink) with Penstemon digitalis 'Husker Red' (white flowers, red foliage) ('Beard Tongue').
• Narcissus large cupped 'Fortissimo' (yellow, orange cup) with Papaver orientale 'Turkenlouise' (orange-red) ('Oriental Poppy').
• Narcissus large cupped 'Ice Follies' (white, yellow cup) with Achillea filipendulina 'Coronation Gold' (yellow) ('Yarrow').
• Narcissus large cupped 'Salome' (white, salmon-pink cup) with Tiarella 'Pink Symphony' (light pink) ('Foamflower') and Heuchera 'Pewter Moon' (light pink) ('Coral Bells').
• Narcissus triandus 'Thalia' (white) with Matteucia struthiopteris ('Ostrich Fern').
• Tulips fosteriana 'Yellow Emperor' (yellow) with Euphorbia polychroma (greenish-yellow) ('Cushion Spurge').
• Tulips lilyflowered 'Ballade' (purple & white) with Geranium sylvaticum 'Mayflower' (purple-blue & white) ('Hardy Geranium' or 'Cranesbill').
• Tulips lilyflowered 'West Point' (yellow) with Alchemilla mollis (yellow) ('Lady's Mantle').
• Tulips lilyflowered 'White Triumphator' (white) with Dicentra spectabilis Alba (white) ('Bleeding Heart').
• Tulips single late 'Queen of Night' (dark purple-black) with Sedum 'Matrona' (bluish foliage, red flowers) ('Stonecrop').
• Tulips single late 'Maureen' (white) with Tulips single late 'Menton' (peach) with Tulips single late 'Renown' (pink) and with Dicentra spectabilis (pink & white) ('Bleeding Heart')..
• Tulips triumph 'Barcelona' (dark pink) with Dicentra spectabilis (pink & white) ('Bleeding Heart').
• Tulips triumph 'Negrita' (dark purple) with Stachys byzantina (silver-grey foliage) ('Lamb's Ears').