When to start planting (Dallas: Home Depot, live, gardening)

[emmablue]

New to the area and I've heard that Feb is a cold month. When can I start planting bulbs here? Also what about other plants, am I suppose to wait until after Feb? Thank you for your help.

[JasonDFW]

January is the coldest month. February rapidly warms up, although not as quickly as March. It can still get cold though, especially if you're in the suburbs and not in the heat island. Many bulbs can (and almost have to ) be planted in late Fall, and a few not until March. Odd things can happen lately though. February and the rest of winter was too warm (in 2006 I think) so the Dallas Arboretum had to dig up thousands of bulbs and toss them in the fridge.

Jason

[emmablue]

The bulbs that they sell at home depot or lowes are the ones that will bloom in late spring or summer. So if I plant them it sounds like its a crap shoot if they will be ok. OH Well....thank you for the info.

[cj6]

Originally Posted by emmablue

The bulbs that they sell at home depot or lowes are the ones that will bloom in late spring or summer. So if I plant them it sounds like its a crap shoot if they will be ok. OH Well....thank you for the info.

Try the Texas Agricultural Extension for your county. They will have the answers for your gardening related questions. Their mission is to providing information and educational services to all Texan residents.
See Texas AgriLife Extension Service - County Extension Offices (http://texasextension.tamu.edu/county/ - broken link) to find your local extension office. They are such an invaluable resource for gardeners, especially when you are new to an area.

"... the expertise provided by AgriLife Extension is available to every resident in every Texas county. But Extension specialists are well-aware that a program offered in Dallas might not be relevant in the Rio Grande Valley. AgriLife Extension custom-designs its programs to different areas of the state, significantly depending on residents for input and program delivery."

Welcome to Dallas. and good luck with your bulbs. I pulled mine out of the ice box and planted them two weeks ago. They have already sprouted and are growing like weeds...

[momof2dfw]

I've GOT to get my tulip bulbs in the ground. I usually plant those in January. It's not too late yet but I've GOT to hurry. For late spring and early summer bulbs I'd wait till March/April to plant those.