Oftentimes the daffodils trumpet the arrival of the first day of spring. There is just something so wonderfully cheery about their bright yellow faces on a rainy spring day!
At about the same time as a whole array of fun smaller bulbs come into bloom. We have erythronium, Star of Bethlehem and anemones that pop up here and there in the landscape beds.
Anemone St. Brigid Anemone blanda
Of course there are standard tulips. Years ago I bought some long-lived red tulips that have produced a clump of bulbs that have been blooming for over 15 years. I wish I could remember where I got them and what they were called.
The standard hyacinths add their heavenly scent to the mix about the same time. They have been incredibly long lived though they haven't spread or naturalized.
In late April the scilla come into bloom under the Doug Firs. They spread in great clumps and naturalize wonderfully. The Lily of the Valley have spread so much that they are starting to be a bit of a nuisance but it only took them 20 years to get that way. I started with a handful of pips and with no care and little feeding they've now covered a good 200 sq feet.
When all of these wind down then my favorites, the Dutch Iris, come into bloom.
Finally, the Siberian Iris (which really aren't bulbs but who's counting) are followed by the English Iris (which are bulbs very similar to the Dutch Iris, just later).
Siberian Iris
Then just before the first day of summer, the Allium moly come into bloom. They love it here in my sandy soil and produce HUGE quantities of bulbs every year. You could have an entire garden full of them if you dug and divided them every year.
When I first planted these small alliums I planted white and pink ones at the same time the pink ones died out in a couple of years. The white ones have hung on but not multiplied.