How to clear a bed of old bulbs and replace with annuals

jw89 · July 2021

I have a bed which had ranunculus and anemones which are now done. I want to replace them with some annuals I have ready to go in. Should I just plant in between the foliage and allow it to naturally die back on its own or do I need to lift them all. I’ve not had the best luck at storing bulbs. They tent to either go rotten or get eaten. I obviously want the ranunculus and anemones to come back next year. Any suggestions?

JennyJ · July 2021

I would plant in between the bulbs and leave them in. Having said that I haven't had much success with getting more than one year out of ranunculus.

Dovefromabove · July 2021

Yes I’d plant between the bulbs … but first I’d top that bed up with more compost … a mix of MPC and either topsoil of John Innes no 3 loambased compost. Top it up to within as couple of inches of the rim. That’ll be good for the bulbs and make sure there’s plenty of root room for the annuals. 😊

jw89 · July 2021

Thank you @JennyJ and @Dovefromabove that will be my job for tomorrow 👍

Fairygirl · July 2021

I agree with @Dovefromabove - get the soil level up where it should be, and that will help enormously.
Soil levels always drop over time in raised beds , so it's good to keep topping up regularly. It means plants have access to enough nutrients too, as it's essentially much the same as a pot or container.

I'd agree with @JennyJ too about ranunculus. They aren't very suited to staying outside over winter, but it might depend whereabouts you are. Those little spring anemones can be tricky too if they don't have optimum conditions.

jw89 · July 2021

@Fairygirl I’m in west Scotland too. Do you think I would be best to just lift them? I do hate that job tho lol.

Fairygirl · July 2021

Ah - I don't find the early anemones [de Caen types as opposed to the woodland ones] do well here generally. Difficult to give them the right conditions, although a raised bed in a sunny site is ideal, in theory.
I got some ranunculus last autumn - first time I've grown them in a very long time, and I can't remember what I did with them before! I probably left them and they most likely didn't survive winter. I'm in two minds as to whether I'll keep these ones. They were very dark purple [which is what I like] but mine are potted, so I could just stick them in the wee greenhouse, or bring them indoors.
I know what you mean about lifting stuff. Pain in the ring isn't it?

jw89 · August 2021

@Fairygirl it’s probably the only garden task I really hate doing. Such a pain and then storing them is such an issue. My shed is falling apart so water gets in as do mice lol so bulbs don’t survive there and I don’t have any where else really to put them. The bed needs a good top up of soil so if I do that they might just survive 😬

Fairygirl · August 2021

I'd certainly give that a go. The alternative is lifting and bringing into your house or something similar, if the shed's a bit rubbish. With the best will in the world, they get damp over winter here, so not ideal for many plants and bulbs. I re did the roof on mine last year, and it made a difference though.

How to clear a bed of old bulbs and replace with annuals

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