Be prepared for a colourful summer

This is not meant as an insult to any spring bulb which has pushed, or which still is, gallantly pushing its way to the soil surface in order to brighten our dismal days.

So, if you are a tulip, an iris, a daffodil, a snowdrop or even an aconite, please do not feel aggrieved.

Now is the time to be thinking seriously about summer-flowering bulbs – planting them to bloom while the temperatures are high and the skies are blue.

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There is absolutely no excuse not to have at least a few summer-flowering bulbs; even if there isn't a garden, there must be room for a pot, a container, a window-box to hold a few freesias, pineapple flowers or even a dahlia or two.

Bulbs are the easiest of all things to grow – they come primed and fully prepared to burst into life. They are sleeping giants, whatever their size. So to ensure a summer of gorgeous colour, get out and buy bulbs now.

Plant them after the threat of frost has vanished; give them a well-drained soil where the sun shines.

Then wait for them to stick their snouts above the soil, sniff the air, and grow.

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If you can't wait to get them planted outdoors, pot them up in containers and get them growing somewhere light and bright but not too warm. As long as there's no risk of frost or waterlogging, they should be more than happy.

For something slightly unusual, consider a few bulbs of Nerine bowdenii, whose pink flowers appear in late September.