The Spokane County Master Gardener Foundation has opened its annual flower that blooms in autumn bulb sale, giving gardeners until Sept. 18 to order bulbs for spring color. Pickup begins Oct. 17 at the WSU Spokane County Extension Office, 222 N. Havana St.
This year's sale offers more than 50 unique bulb varieties, including rare and unusual tulips and daffodils, plus brodiaea, erythronium and fritillaria. The five top-selling bulbs from last year's sale are back, and the order page includes pictures and growing instructions to help buyers choose.
Spokane County Master Gardener Foundation
Orders can be placed on the Spokane County Master Gardener Foundation website. The sale runs on a short schedule because bulbs need to be planted in late September into October to get spring color, so the ordering window closes before pickup starts.
Van Engelen Flower is supplying the bulbs, and it has offered flower bulbs commercially since 1845. Proceeds from the annual sale benefit the Master Gardener Foundation of Spokane County, which supports the WSU Spokane County Master Gardener Program.
WSU Spokane County Extension Office
When the bulbs arrive on Oct. 17, buyers will collect them at the WSU Spokane County Extension Office rather than at the point of order. That delay leaves gardeners choosing now for plantings that do not begin until fall, a gap that favors early decisions over last-minute shopping.
The program tied to the sale also runs plant clinics at the WSU Spokane County Extension Office, Shadle Library, South Hill Library and Cheney Library, and it maintains demonstration gardens at the Extension Office and the Spokane Conservation District. It installed a wildfire resistant garden at the extension office early this summer.
For gardeners trying to line up spring blooms, the practical move is simple: order before Sept. 18 and plan for pickup on Oct. 17, while the variety list is still open. The only unresolved question is how many bulbs remain in each variety before the sale sells out.
