Summer flowering bulbs

Summer flowering beauties are lilies, liatris, zantedeschia's, gladioli, freesia's and possibly the most popular...the dahlias.

The dahlia's can be planted in the garden or in containers outside. They originally come from Mexico, and are grown in many shapes and sizes. It is one of the most popular summer bloomers.

Dahlias do not like frost, so take the weather into account before planting them (there can be night frost until mid May!), and remove them from the ground in the autumn, or store the pots away from frost. 

Plant the tubers with the roots downwards, and make sure that the piece of old stem that is still attached is just below the soil. If you expect a night frost, cover it with some straw or old leaves. Plant them in a sunny place, in well-drained soil. Keep an eye on the snails; they also love dahlias, especially when the shoots are just emerging from the ground. After you overcome that hurdle, you have a generous plant that can bloom all summer (and autumn) long with many colourful flowers.