Spring bulbs where?

The Mr Middleton website always has a great selection. If you want to go organic Fruithill Farm but their bulbs are always in high demand and can sell out very fast, also a little more expensive due to being organic.

Mr. Middleton's site will lead you directly to a Dutch site if you want to order bulp,. Good selection but high delivery charges. I used a different site, Gardens4you,also Dutch but cheaper. Awaiting delivery and hoping it will not be too late to plant tulip bulbs.

CelticRambler wrote: »

What do you mean by "bulk"? I had a quick look at the Future Forest and Greens websites, and they don't seem to do "bulk" in the sense that I understand it! A few weeks ago, I ordered a "small" bulk order of 1000 bulbs (mostly Tulips and Crocus) from bulbi.nl, 162€ delivered (to France, 9€ flat rate for me, 16€ to Ireland).

Neither Future Forest nor Greens had the varieties I ordered, so I couldn't do a true like-for-like comparison, but overall, their prices seem to be noticeably higher, and I'd wonder if you'd be getting Dutch bulbs anyway (almost all our supermarket specials here in France come from NL which is why I went direct).

That bulbi.nl price is very good. IIRC Clarenbridge do bulk orders but I don't know how the prices would compare.


I'd say all the bulbs are coming from Holland apart from some of the daffodils/narcissi.

Due to poor service from mr Middleton and future forests over the years (rotten/mouldy and late/ slow delivery) I used Peter nyssen in the uk this year and they were very good better prices and great service.

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

Just had a look at bulbi, gorgeous selection! what I wouldn’t give if they were organic!

I feel a bit guilty about buying the ordinary bulbs but the organic ones are so expensive and there is not so much choice. I ended up buying about 1,200 assorted bulbs. Hopefully they will prosper but if they don't I am finished with spring bulbs!

Bill Hook wrote: »

Hopefully they will prosper but if they don't I am finished with spring bulbs!

As someone who was born and reared with daffodils as the only "spring bulb" (in my mother's garden, but which thrived despite next-to-no care and attention) I didn't realise until this last year how different are the conditions needed for the different species, and especially tulips.

My daffs (like my mother's) have done amazingly well over the last 15 years with no intervention at all; and a small batch of crocuses have held their own in one part of the bed, as have a few regular and grape hyacinths. This last week, I've created a completely new bed in front of the daffs, dug it deep and planted it with masses of tulips (in pots) and crocuses. I've seen other gardens in the area with great displays of tulips in the spring, so the weather and the soil can't be wrong - it must be (have been) me! :pac: I'm sticking to massive quantities of just a few species for now so that I can get used to properly managing them.

OP, your question might have been better if it said "Spring bulbs when". You are a little late in the year now. I start looking around for bulbs in July. I ordered a load of Colchicums in July from Peter Nysenn which arrived in the first week of August.

There are still some stocks of bulbs around but start looking or ordering much earlier next year. I've just checked Peter Nysenn web site and the bulbs I ordered are now all out of stock.

Graces7 wrote: »

I will be interested to hear how the West Cork do? I bought some last year and they failed dramatically.

I have bought elsewhere this year and they are doing better; these are indoor hyacinths and paperwhites.

+1 we have had terrible problems with west cork bulbs in the past, impossible to contact the company directly to complain.

Bill Hook wrote: »

Oh no, most of my bulbs were West Cork Bulbs:mad:. Both Future Forests and Greens of Ireland supplied them to me. They all looked fine apart from some daffodils which I complained to Future Forests about and got a refund.

Oh, I got a refund from future forests but wanted to discuss the problem with west cork bulbs, but they don’t really exist.

Bill Hook wrote: »

A refund is not much use when you've wasted hours planting the fecking things! And I can't complain in advance so I will just have to wait until next spring to be disappointed and annoyed.

I know as I have thousands to do a year

Have used Farmer Gracy for the last few years, good size and quality to the bulbs and a great selection, price isn't to steep either. So far no complaints.

Sign up for the news letter and they send you discount codes, makes it hard to stop buying.

PS. I'm no way connected to the company, just a satisfied customer