This is the time of year I begin itching to get my hands in the dirt. I am ready to start planting! February, however, or the weather rather, has other ideas. The good news is that while I am unable to actually plant, I can start ordering bulbs and dreaming of what’s to come. While there are lots of great outlets to purchase bulbs (tubers) from, below are a few of my tried-and-true.
Eden Brothers: Eden Brothers offers one of the biggest assortments of tubers available online. The tubers here tend to be larger than those from smaller, independent farms, and tend to have more than one eye (growing point) as well. Given both of those points, I recommend that beginners start here. One of the other things I like about Eden Brothers is that they offer “mixes”, or combinations of 5-10 bulbs in complementary colorways. The mixes are a nice option to have if you are interested in experimenting, or are unsure about a particular variety. One thing to note, however, is that the individual tubers within the mixes are not labeled so what goes where (and what comes up!) can be a surprise.
Bear Creek Farm: Bear Creek offers over 100 different varieties of tubers, in a diverse range of colors and sizes. Their website is categorized as such, and is easy to navigate. Be sure to sign up for announcements from Bear Creek as once their seasonal sales open up, the tubers – especially the rare varieties – will sell out fast!
FIVEFORK Farms: FIVEFORK Farms is a partnership between five siblings, born from a mutual passion for “growing, arranging, and selling flowers”, inherited from their mother. The tubers from this farm are chosen for both their quality and marketability. I first discovered Canby Centennial here, which is one of my very favorite varieties to grow.
