Planting Pansies and Tulips for Winter and Spring Color

Even though winters are cold it is still possible to have color in your flower beds. Joellen Dimond, Director of Landscape at the University of Memphis, shows how to prepare a bed and plant pansies and tulips. She first removes all the plants and turns over the soil to break up any clods. In the process she digs up the daffodils that were planted last year and sets them aside to replant. She then turns her attention to planting the bulbs. For fertilizer, she spreads bone meal on the soil and then plants the tulips about 6 inches deep. The bone meal is incorporated into the soil as the bulbs are planted. She also replants the daffodils. Once the bulbs are planted, she spreads a slow release fertilizer and mulch. She then lays out and plants the pansies through the mulch. The bulbs are deep enough they are not disturbed by planting the pansies. The pansies will give a splash of color in the winter and the tulips and daffodils will pop up in the spring.

Past Plantings in this flower bed:
Planting Summer Flowers 2016
Planting Fall Flowers 2016
Planting Petunias, Vinca, and Salvia (2017)
Planting Dusty Miller and Pansies (2017)
Planting Summer Flowers (2018)
Planting Violas (2018)
Planting Sunpatiens, Joseph's Coat, and Colocasia (2019)
Planting Daffodils, Dianthus, and Pansies (2019)

Related Resources:
Success with Pansies in the Winter Landscape: A Guide for Landscape Professionals
Darling Dianthus
Spring Flowering Bulbs: Daffodils
Dusty Miller, Senecio cineraria