Bulbs for Central Texas

Growing Bulbs in Central Texas

Growing bulbs in Central Texas, or anywhere in the south, can be challenging. Most traditional bulbs, especially tulips, require a winter chill period. Wide fluctuations in spring weather also impact bloom quality. The blossoms of spring flowering bulbs are not equipped to handle daytime temperatures in the 80’s or 90’s, and can quickly fade in the heat. But gardening in the south has advantages, we are lucky that there are spectacular summer and fall flowering bulbs that can’t be grown in the north.

What is a bulb?

The term “bulb” is used to describe flowers and vegetables that have some sort of food storage mechanism in their stems or roots. “Bulb” can encompass true bulbs, rhizomes, tubers, corms, and tuberous roots.

Candy Stripe Crinum flower, a recommended bulb for Central Texas

Crinum lily ‘Candy Stripe’

Recommendations for Travis County

This list of bulbs for Central Texas is based on recommendations from Travis County Master Gardeners Betty Dunn and Yvonne Schneider. Some of these are heirloom varieties which may be hard to find unless ordered online.

Bulb Grouping	Common Name	Latin Name	Flowering Height	Sun Exposure	Flower Color	Notes
Daffodil	Erlicheer	Narcissus ‘Erlicheer’	12-14 in	Partial shade	White	double cluster flowered
Daffodil	W P Milner	Narcissus ‘W.P. Milner’	12 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Cream	miniature cream trumpet
Daffodil	Early Louisiana	Narcissus jonquilla subsp. jonquilla ‘Early Louisiana’	10 in	Full sun	Yellow
Daffodil	Intrigue	Narcissus jonquilla ‘Intrigue’	8-12 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Yellow	better than ‘Pippit’
Daffodil	Saint Kaverne	Narcissus jonquilla ‘Saint Kaverne’	16-18 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Yellow	good fragrance and slightly larger than ‘Sweetness’
Daffodil	Sweetness	Narcissus jonquilla ‘Sweetness’	16-18 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Yellow	best fragrance
Daffodil	Trevethian	Narcissus jonquilla ‘Trevethian’	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Soft yellow	good fragrance
Daffodil	Paperwhites	Narcissus papyraceus	12-14 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White	mostly used for forcing indoors
Daffodil	Avalanche	Narcissus tazetta ‘Avalanche’	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White with yellow cups
Daffodil	Avalanche of Gold	Narcissus tazetta ‘Avalanche of Gold’	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Yellow
Daffodil	Early Pearl	Narcissus tazetta ‘Early Pearl’	14-16 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White
Daffodil	Golden Dawn	Narcissus tazetta ‘Golden Dawn’	8-10 in	Full sun	Yellow with gold cups
Daffodil	Grand Primo	Narcissus tazetta ‘Grand Primo’	12-14 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White
Daffodil	Thalia	Narcissus triandrus ‘Thalia’	12-18 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White
Ipheon	Jessie Starflower	Ipheion uniflorum ‘Jessie’	3-6 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Deep violet blue
Ipheon	Rolf Fiedler Starflower	Ipheion uniflorum ‘Rolf Fiedler’	3-6 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Deep blue
Ipheon	Starflower	Ipheion uniflorum	3-6 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Pale blue
Ipheon	Wisley Blue Starflower	Ipheion uniflorum ‘Wisley Blue’	3-6 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Deeper blue than species
Lily	Agapanthus, Lily of the Nile	Agapanthus africanus	18-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Blue or white	evergreen strappy foliage, prefers some afternoon shade
Lily	Canna Lily	Canna indica	18-72 in	Full Sun	Various	spread by rhizomes so best in containers or contained areas; prefer moisture for best blooms. Many species and hybrid varieties
Lily	Crinum Lilies	Crinum americanum, Crinum hybrids	12-36 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Mostly white, some pink to red hybrids	prefer moist soils but drought tolerant once established
Lily	Hardy Amaryllis ‘Johnsonii’	Hippeastrum x johnsonii	10-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Red to white striped	other Dutch hybrids work in pots and to a lesser extent in semi-shade with protection from north wind
Lily	Red-hot Poker	Khiphofia uvaria	24-48 in	Full sun	Top flowers red to orange; lower flowers yellow	new hybrids offer single color varieties, prefers dry areas, drought tolerant
Lily	Spider Lily	Lycoris radiata	12-16 in	Partial Shade	Red	fall bloomer
Lily	Naked Ladies	Lycoris squamigera	24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Pink to purple	late summer to fall bloomer. Needs some chill and may not bloom after a mild winter.
Lily	Oxblood or Schoolhouse Lily	Rhodophiala bifida	10-16 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Red	fall bloomer
Lily	Society Garlic	Tulbaghia violacea	12-24 in	Full Sun	Lilac to pink	variegated variety prefers some afternoon shade, pink variety can be used as a bog plant
Lily	Rain Lily	Zephyranthes candida, Zephyranthes labufarrosa	6-10 in	Full sun, Partial shade	White to pink	sporadic bloomer that prefers moist soils, blooms after a rain starting in mid spring
Lily	Spider Lily	Lycoris radiata	12-16 in	Partial shade	Red	fall bloomer
Oxalis	White Oxalis	Oxalis alba	4-8 in	Partial shade	Pink
Oxalis	Rosea Oxalis	Oxalis crassipes	4-8 in	Partial shade	Pink
Tulip	Lady Jane	Tulipa clusiana ‘Lady Jane’	6-12 in	Full sun	Pink and white	species tulip with similar characteristics as ‘Lady Jane’
Tulip	Golden Tulip	Tulipa clusiana var. chrysantha	6-12 in	Full sun	Butter yellow and pink

Bearded Iris ‘Secret Rites’

These minor bulbs, corms, and rhizomes will do well in pots. Treat them as annuals.

Bulb Grouping	Common Name	Latin Name	Flowering Height	Sun Exposure	Flower Color	Notes
Allium	Drummund Onion	Allium drummundii	10 in	Full sun	White	Reseeds aggressively. TX native
Allium	Rosy Garlic	Allium roseum ‘Grandiflorum’	10 in	Full sun	Pink	Reseeds aggressively
Anemone	Poppy Anemone	Anemone coronaria	10-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various	Good in pots
Freesia	Freesia	Freesia laxa, Fressia grandiflora, Freesia x hybrids	12-18 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various	various colors some single, some double – sun while growing; good in pots; Freesia Laxa soft pinkish red or white (formerly known as Lapeirousia Cruenta) – sun while growing reseeds & will grow from seed in fall to bloom in March; great in pots
Gladiolus	Byzantine gladiolus	Gladiolus communis var. byzantinus	12-24 in	Full sun	Purple-magenta to copper-red	Full sun to light shade.
Iris	Crocosmia ‘George Davidson’	Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora ‘George Davidson’	16-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Butter yellow
Iris	Zigzag Louisiana Iris	Iris brevicaulis	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various	prefers moist soil
Iris	Blackberry Lily	Iris domestica	24-36 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Orange	pale orange w speckles, has shiny black seeds
Iris	Copper Iris	Iris fulva	12-36 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Yellow to red	prefers moist soil
Iris	Bearded Iris	Iris germanica	24-36 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various
Iris	Giant Blue Flag Louisiana Iris	Iris giganticaerulea	36-60 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Blue	prefers moist soil
Iris	Dixie or Carolina Iris	Iris hexagona	36-48 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Blue to lavender	prefers moist soil
Iris	Nelson’s Water Iris Louisiana Iris	Iris nelsonii	36-48 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Red to lavender	prefers moist soil
Iris	Juno Iris	Iris subg. Scorpiris	10 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various	small plants
Iris	Dutch Iris	Iris hollandica	18-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various
Muscari	Grape Hyacinth ‘Blue Bottles’	Muscari neglectum ‘Blue Bottles’	6-10 in	Full sun	Deep blue	mostly full sun, likes moisture
Muscari	Grape Hyacinth ‘Dark Eyes’	Muscari neglectum ‘Dark Eyes’	4-6 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Deep blue	mostly full sun, likes moisture, prefers afternoon shade
Muscari	Grape Hyacinth ‘Valerie Finnis’	Muscari neglectum ‘Valerie Finnis’	6-8 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Pale blue	mostly full sun, likes moisture
Ranunculus	Ranunculus	Ranunculus	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Various	Good in pots
Scilla	Spanish Blue Bell ‘Excelsior’	Hyacinthoides hispanica ‘Excelsior’	12-24 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Purple blue	a stronger grower than the white or pink, dappled shade then full shade while dormant; good in pots
Scilla	Portuguese squill	Scilla peruviana	6-12 in	Full sun, Partial shade	Blue to purple	needs afternoon shade