Bulbs, - what should I be looking for?

At this time of year, there are bulbs for sale in every garden centre, DIY "shed" and Supermarket, - but what are the differences and what should you be looking for

Garden Centres
These will have at least one of the big Bulb growers ranges, - Taylors bulbs, Winchester Growers, Kapityn or Walkers.  Most will name individual varieties of the bulbs, e.g Tulip Red Riding Hood, or Narcissus Tete a Tete, and have selections of different colours.  Most of the bulbs are very high grade, and will be of a large size so that flowering in the first season is guarenteed

The Sheds
The DIY stores (B&Q and Homebase mainly) have a very good offering this year with excellent quality and pricing, however their usually own branded bulbs are not always sold as named varieties, so you may find Red Tulips and Yellow Daffodils, rather than any names,- this is no problem, if you are just looking to fill a gap.

The Supermarkets
The Supermarkets usually have the bulbs at an aisle end, or with the Houseplants, - they usually offer collections of bulbs, so you have a mixture of white and blue or red and yellow, and these are good selections for pots, but beware, they are usually sold in sealed boxes, so you can't check the quality of the bulbs.

To buy healthy floriferous bulbs, you are looking for
The biggest bulbs that are available
The bulbs need to be firm to pressure, any squishy ones are no good
No mould on the bulbs, - bulbs tend to "bloom" and get a grey mould on them if they are stored too long,/ in the wrong humidity. this can be wiped off if it in just on the surface, but it quickly causes the bulbs to go mouldy if left

If you are not ready to plant your bulbs when you've bought them, store them off the ground in a shed or garage, so that they are dry but not too hot.

Let me know of any bulb bargains that you find, - i've got a whole new garden to fill!