Fall is around the corner, and while you are probably getting ready to start decorating your garden with pumpkins and hay bales, this is also the time to think ahead—way ahead—to spring!

It’s unfortunate that right at the time the season is at its peak color, but do yourself a favor now and order your spring-blooming bulbs in preparation for planting this fall. That way you’ll have something special to look forward to this winter.

Below are some of our favorite combinations for spring plantings. For even more information, check out how to plant your bulbs so that they appear as a natural feature in the landscape in Naturalizing Spring Bulbs.

Great spring bulb combinations to plant now

Tulips

Red tulips are classic and all-purpose

Tulips (Tulipa spp. and cvs.) are versatile favorites, and it’s hard to go wrong with classic red tulips. They go with virtually anything. But an underplanting of pale blue forget-me-nots might be the best thing to lift them to superstar status.

Upright forms, striking colors

The stiff, upright blades of Bowles’ golden sedge serve two purposes in this striking combo: They act as a contrasting backdrop for the magenta tulips, and they mimic the tulips’ upright stems, drawing even more notice to both.

Sunshine and blue skies

You’ve been waiting so long for clear skies and the warmth of the spring sun, so celebrate them with cheery yellow tulips and pale azure forget-me-nots.

Grape hyacinths

Another delicate play on pastels

Grape hyacinths (Muscari spp. and cvs.) may be small, but their color and texture can enhance many spring combinations. Pale blue ‘Valerie Finnis’ grape hyacinth might be overpowered by a big, bold, bright yellow daffodils, so pair it instead with a more delicate version—in both size and hue—to make a harmonious mix.

A bouquet of spring bulbs

Bulbs are most often planted in drifts or small clumps, but sometimes it’s nice to plant an in-the-ground bouquet. Save a few bulbs from each of your plantings in fall, and pick a special spot to mix them together.

Watch the blooms evolve

Just before a grape hyacinth blooms, its architectural flower form is most apparent. The hints of blue peeking through promise that this color-coordinated combo with poppy anemone will be even more stunning in a few days.

Alliums

The flowers are fabulous even when they fade

The spherical umbels on most alliums (Allium spp. and cvs.) are striking in any spring combination. The alliums pictured below might not be colorful anymore, but the seed heads still stand out against the deep burgundy backdrop of a smokebush. As the capsules ripen, they’ll fade to beige and burst open, revealing the seeds inside.

Plant more than one variety

Alliums aren’t just purple. There are a few out-of-the-ordinary colors too, and it’s fun to experiment and mix them up. Planting more than one variety together lets you observe their bloom times, which will open your eyes to other pairing opportunities.

Bring chives out of the herb garden

If you’ve ever grown chives, you know how prolifically they reproduce. If you’re running out of room for the divisions in your herb garden, add them to your borders. Here, they echo the color of the weigela and add a vertical element to the mounding plants around them.

Daffodils

A spring garden party of colors

Iceland poppies in a mix of bright colors are cheerful on their own, but add some daffodils (Narcissus spp. and cvs.) and you’ve got a lively party. Pass the champagne!

A planting that evolves as the weeks go by

Daffodils typically bloom before tulips. Take advantage of this fact to create a planting that moves with the season. The daffodils emerge first and bloom just as the tulip buds start to show color. As the daffodils fade, the tulips will peak.

Bold colors, big charm

This classic daffodil is what we envision in our minds when someone says “daffodil.” It’s big, bright, and happy. Underplanting it with the speckled leaves and pink and purple blooms of a lungwort makes it pop even more. Spring is here!

For more spring garden inspiration, see Planting Spring Bulbs in Containers.

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

Organo Republic 16 Perennial Wildflower Seeds Mix for Indoor & Outdoors

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Premium 16 Perennial Wildflower Seeds Mix - Special Garden Flower Seeds Blend designed for planting indoor & outdoors across North America. With over 16 varieties and 100,000 wildflower seeds, this mix is the best solution to attract pollinators - bees, butterflies & birds are essential for garden plants health. Our Special Perennial Wildflower Seeds Mix Includes White Yarrow, Columbine, New England Aster, Siberian Wallflower, Shasta Daisy, Lance-Leaf Coreopsis, Sweet William, Purple Coneflower, Blanketflower, Gayfeather, Blue Flax, Lupine, Dwarf Evening, Primrose, Mexican Hat, Prairie Coneflower, Black Eyed Susan. Easy & Fun Growing Experience with our online guides - Don’t plant disappointment - Add more colors to your wildflower garden! We send only super hearty heirloom flower seeds with the highest germination rate and fast sprout. Our detailed growing guide helps you grow seeds the garden of your dream like a PRO. Colorful Wildflower Garden from Seeds - Grow wildflowers everywhere - Indoor in window garden or Outdoors Flower garden Garden make a beautiful design for your garden borders, pathways, field or meadow and attract pollinators. Made in the USA by Small Family-Owned Business - Quality You Can Trust - Our wildflower bulk seeds variety pack are tested at the highest germination rates before being sealed to last for up to 3 years before you need to plant. Each packet of our flower seeds variety pack is resealable to make it easy to store and has its own label with a QR code for the growing instructions.

Buy at Amazon

Plant Covers Freeze Protection 10 ft x 30 ft Floating Row Cover 0.9oz/yd²

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Lightweight and Breathable MATERIAL Good for protecting Plant: the plant frost cover material is 0.74 oz/sq non-woven polypropylene fabric, which is lightweight, breathable, and durable. The plant blanket frost protection allows sunlight reach the plants, perfect for protecting plants from the damage of freeze or frost. Wide Application In your Garden Work. The plant row cover not only can work as a barrier against frost, but also can be a great tool for germination and good for rapid seedling growth. By using the fabric plant covers over your plant, you can start the plant earlier in the spring and extending the growing season of your plants. How to Use the Plant Covers: you can cover the plant covers for freeze over your the plants loosely directly and then secure the plant frost blanket with soil, stones or staples. You can also support the floating row covers with a hoop, make enough room for plants to breath and grow. You could also cut the plant covers into different sizes for different purposes.

Buy at Amazon

Berry & Bird Rabbiting Spade, Trenching Shovel

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Ideal Tool for All Gardeners Use: Our heavy duty trenching shovel is designed by a professional gardening tool designer. Lifetime Durability: This heavy duty drain spade is made of high-quality stainless steel, it is very strong and durable, even if it is used for high-strength work, it will not bend. Ergonomic Wood Handle: The handle of this planting spade is made of ash hardwood harvested from FSC-certified forests and has an ergonomically streamlined design, making it very suitable for everyone's hands. Multi-Use: This digging shovel is generally used for digging trenches, digging holes, transplanting, edging, moving compost, cutting thick turf and furrowing. The sharp blade allows you to cut, scoop, dig, lift and dice in hard soil.

Buy at Amazon