By Cindy Weiner, Butte County Master Gardener, September 5, 2014

In late summer bulbs of daffodils and tulips start appearing in garden stores. Everyone enjoys the lovely display they make in spring. But do you know that there are native spring-blooming bulbs that will also look beautiful in your garden? You may have seen blue dicks (scientific name Dichelostemma capitata) or Ithuriel's spear (Triteleia laxa) blooming in grassy areas in Upper Park or on Table Mountain, but many other natives grow in grasslands, fields and woodlands all over the state.  Planting bulbs is an easy way to get started gardening with native plants. They require little care and will return year after year. Many will colonize and spread, allowing you to dig up extra bulbs to plant in new places.

Native bulbs prefer good drainage, although most will tolerate quite a bit of clay. You can improve drainage by planting on a slope or by mixing in a few inches of coarse sand in the bottom of the planting hole. Native bulbs are quite small compared to daffodils; they are usually less than an inch in diameter, but planted 2 to 4 inches deep. No amendments are necessary. If gophers are present, you will need to protect the bulbs. Plant in October or November after the first rains and be prepared to irrigate if the rains fail. Native bulbs can be planted in a mixed border with annuals and perennials that get little summer water or in other places that aren't irrigated routinely. The plants can be irrigated until the flowers start to fade. Once dormant, the bulbs will rot with too much irrigation. Allow the leaves to dry out completely before removing them as they are producing food to store for the following year's growth and bloom.  Most bulbs prefer sunny locations, but some, like fawn lilies (Erythronium), globe lilies (Calochortus) and true lilies (Lilium) do better in filtered shade.

It can be a challenge to find native bulbs for sale, but many native plant nurseries sell spring-blooming bulbs either as bare bulbs as or as potted plants. Zeb at Floral Native Nursery in Chico expects to have several species available in both forms this fall. These include harvest brodiaea (Brodiaea elegans), California brodiaea (B. californica), Ithuriel's spear (Triteleia laxa) and leopard lily (Lilium pardalinum). He also hopes to have some seed-grown plants of Humboldt's lily (Lilium humboldtii) and Cascade lily (L. washingtonianum). Two online retailers in California, Telos Rare Bulbs (http://telosrarebulbs.com/) and Theodore Payne Foundation (http://theodorepayne.org/), both sell native bulbs. Some of the more adaptable species of native bulbs are also being propagated by the same suppliers that sell daffodils and tulips by mail order. Check their catalogs under “miscellaneous and small bulbs.” The descriptions don't always indicate the plant's origin, but bulbs in the following genera are usually native to California: Brodiaea, Calochortus, Cammasia, Dichelostemma, Erythronium, and Tritelia. Bulbs can be ordered now and stored in a cool, dry place until time to plant. Wherever you buy bulbs, be sure to purchase from reputable dealers who grow their own bulbs. Don't buy from a dealer who digs up wild bulbs. Let's all continue enjoying native bulbs in the wild as well as in special places in our gardens.