13 Must-Dig Bulbs for Fall to Ensure Vibrant Spring Garden (With Proper Guide)

Have you enjoyed all the colorful flowers of large dahlias and tall gladioli during the warm season (and beyond)? Well, if you want to see your bulbous perennials grow back strong and give you more blossoms, you’ll have to protect them over winter. That means dig up bulbs, corms and tubers, and store them away in a safe place over the cold months.

However, not all of them need digging up before winter comes, and these are mainly summer and fall flowering bulbous perennials… And in fact, some need to stay in the cold soil instead, and before you make a mistake and store away the wrong varieties, check out which ones need your help at this stage! But first…

How to Store Bulbs for Winter

How to Store Bulbs for Winter

First, a few quick and easy steps to store away your bulbs, tubers and corms over winter…

  • Clean off excessive soil, by hand, don’t water them!
  • Discard sick ones, and soft ones.
  • Dry the bulbs, corms and tubers for a few days in a warm place, with good ventilation.
  • Store them in a cool, dry and dark place, the ideal temperature is 40-50°F (4-10°C).
  • Place them in breathable containers, like cardboard boxes and paper bags.
  • Add some sawdust.
  • Do not press them
  • And finally, label them!

And now, let’s look at which varieties of bulbous (tuberous and cormous) perennials you should be digging up, and when…

1. Dahlias (Dahlia spp.)

Dahlias

Dahlias give us a long lasting and late floral display of sometimes massive blossoms in warm colors, but they will not survive winters in any climate in USDA zones 7 and below, nor will they fare well in warmer regions if it gets wet during this season.

Dig up the dahlia tubers when the foliage blackens, this usually happens with the first frost (in cold countries they will dry up instead). Cut the stems at about 6 inches (15 cm) above ground, loosen the soil with a fork (or your hands) and pull them up.

2. Sword Lilies (Gladiolus spp.)

Sword Lilies

Sword lilies, or gladioli are cormous perennials that only thrive in the soil in USDA zones 8 and above, and, again, they don’t like wet winters too. Their corms are fairly superficial, though, and so they are easy to dig up.

Dig the corms of gladioli up as soon as the foliage has dried up, which will usually happen in fall, you can loosen the soil a bit, if necessary, then use the long leaves to lift them out of the soil, or you can cut the foliage first (about 4 inches above ground, or 10 cm).

Then, once they are safe, remove the corm at the base of the leaves, and make sure you look for little bulblets if you want to propagate them!

3. Canna Lilies (Canna indica)

 Canna Lilies

What an exotic spectacle are the flowers and glossy leaves of canna indica! And, in fact, they are tropical perennials, with tubers underground that will simply die in any mild climate area, in fact anywhere in zones 7 and below.

But we like to grow them in colder climates too, so, as soon as the leaves dry up, cut them at about 6 inches (15 cm) above ground, then loosen the soil at the base and dig up the tubers. Because they form large clumps, you may need to dig all around them with a fork to uproot them all.

4. Crocosmia (Crocosmia spp.)

Crocosmia

Crocosmia is a summer to mid fall flowering bulbous perennial, and it is a bit more cold hardy than the ones we have seen so far, to USDA zones 6 to 10. However, even in warmer climates, it is better to dig up the corms before winter, as this exotic plant too doesn’t like wet weather.

As soon as the long, blade-like leaves dry up, cut them off, about 4 inches above ground level (10 cm), then loosen the soil and use them to lift the bulbs out of the soil. Once you have dug them up, remove the foliage, and save the corms.

5. Tuberous Begonias (Begonia x tuberhybrida)

Tuberous Begonias

And now we come to a very delicate “bulbous” perennial, but as vulnerable as stunning, which you really must dig up before winter comes: tuberous begonia! In fact, it is cold hardy only to USDA zones 9 to 11, so, the chances are that if you leave the tubers in the soil, they will die.

Wait till the leaves have yellowed, and never uproot it when they are still green, this will usually happen in late fall, or by the first frost. Cut the leaves to ground level, and then carefully dig around the base, making sure you don’t ruin the tubers. Finally dig them up with your hands and clean them, detaching them from the stems.

6. Freesias (Freesia spp.)

Freesias

The thing with heavenly scented freesias is that they can bloom all year round, depending on when you planted them (and on the climate), so, you should have dug up those that blossomed in spring already, and I am here talking about summer or fall flowering ones, unless you live in an area in USDA zones 9 and above and with dry winters.

When the leaves dry up, cut them 1 or 2 inches above ground level (2.5 to 5.0 cm). Then, dig softly around them (I like to use my hands), and find the tubers. Finally clean them and remove the dry foliage before storing them.

7. Angels’ Ears (Caladium spp.)

Angelsโ€™ Ears (Caladium spp.

Caladiums, a.k.a. angels’ ears, have really stunning and colorful foliage, and they are actually tuberous, which means that you can grow these exotic plants in mild climates as well, but if you live in USDA zones 8 or below, you will have to dig them up in fall.

Cut the whole plant down as soon as the leaves yellow, then dig very carefully around the stems and recover the tubers. These are always jobs best done by hand, and then, snap off the stems and clean them before storing them for winter.

8. Tiger Flower (Tigridia pavonia)

Tiger Flower (Tigridia pavonia

Coming from Mexico and South America, tiger flower, or Tigridia pavonia is a real show stopper, but it is only cold hardy to USDA zones 8 and above – but we all love it in our gardens, and if you want it back next year…

Wait till fall, when the leaves dry up; this is time to dig the bulbs up. Cut the foliage, then dig around the stem, and recover both bulbs and any bulblets, because they actually grow very fast compared with other bulbous perennials! As usual, remove stem and leaves, clean, dry and store away.

9. Elephant Ears (Colocasia spp. and Alocasia spp.)

Elephant Ears (Colocasia spp. and Alocasia spp.)

Elephant ears plants have kept your garden looking lush and like a tropical forest throughout the season with their impressive leaves? Well, they will keep doing through winter if you live in USDA zones 9 or 10 and above – otherwise they will die back.

And, as soon as they do, it is time to dig up their tubers or rhizomes. You can cut back the foliage to a few inches above ground level, then dig around the stems very carefully, find them, clean them and store them away over winter.

10. Persian Buttercup (Ranunculus asiaticus)

Persian Buttercup (Ranunculus asiaticus)

You may be planting or digging up ranunculus in fall, and it all depends on where you live. In fact, in colder climates (USDA zones 7 and below) they will blossom in summer, and the bulbs (corms in this case) go in the ground in spring. In USDA 8 and above, you can do the opposite (plant them in fall and get the flowers in mid to late spring). In both cases, they bloom for 4 to 7 weeks and they are perfect for bouquets!

So, let them flower, and wait till the leaves yellow. Once they have done so, cut the stems down to about 2 inches above ground level (5.0 cm), dig around them carefully, uproot the corms, and finally detach them from the stems.

11. Lily of the Nile (Agapanthus spp.)

Lily of the Nile (Agapanthus spp.)

What a spectacle the lily of the Nile’s flowers are! But these bulbous perennials too are exotic, and they will not survive if you leave the bulbs underground in USDA zones 7 or below, because they come from Africa! So, guess what?

When the leaves die back, cut them off (with the stalk if you left it), and then dig down gently, till you find the rhizomes. Lift them out of the soil, clean them, and only leave a small section (2 inches, or 5.0 cm) of the dried-up plant attached to them.

12. Jersey Lily (Amaryllis belladonna)

Jersey Lily (Amaryllis belladonna)

And we end our list with the biggest of them all: Jersey lily. Not from the state of Jersey, but from South Africa, Amaryllis belladonna is not cold hardy at all, only to USDA 8 and above, in fact. But if you want its massive flowers in your garden in late summer and fall, you can still plant the massive bulbs, and dig them up when the foliage has dried up, as usual.

On the other hand, it is very easy to dig up the bulbs of this colossus for two reasons… One, they are massive, and two, we surface plant them, with the neck just above ground level.

So, cut all the dry leaves back to about 2 inches (5.0 cm) above the bulb, and then dig around the bulb itself, very carefully, you should use your hands when you get close to it, then lift it up, and clean it, dry it, and store it.

A Final Word on Bulbs to Dig Up in Fall

These are the main bulbs we should dig up in fall, but all summer flowering bulbs with exotic origins, even less common ones, like Aztec lily (Sprekelia formosissima) or spider lilies (Hymenocallis spp.) will need uprooting unless you live in a tropical and subtropical region.

And a final tip: if you have forgotten to dig up spring flowering bulbs, now it’s time to do it!

Amber Noyes

Written By

Amber Noyes

Amber Noyes was born and raised in a suburban California town, San Mateo. She holds a master’s degree in horticulture from the University of California as well as a BS in Biology from the University of San Francisco. With experience working on an organic farm, water conservation research, farmers’ markets, and plant nursery, she understands what makes plants thrive and how we can better understand the connection between microclimate and plant health. When sheโ€™s not on the land, Amber loves informing people of new ideas/things related to gardening, especially organic gardening, houseplants, and growing plants in a small space.

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