Spring
Early-Spring Flowers: The First Color After Winter
The first color of the year, when you need it most. These bulbs and perennials flower while the garden is still waking up.
Nothing lifts the spirits like the first flower after a long winter. While most of the garden is still bare, a handful of tough plants push up color, and because almost nothing else is open, they get all the attention they deserve. A little planning in autumn buys you weeks of welcome color at the start of the year.
Most of these are bulbs, planted the previous fall, with a few early perennials mixed in. Check the bloom calendar on each plant page to line them up so the color starts as early as possible and carries into spring.
The very first flowers
These open in late winter, sometimes straight through frost and snow, and they feed the first bees of the year.
Galanthus
The most famous first flower of the year, nodding white bells through the frost, though by our bloom calendars the hellebore and witch hazel below open even earlier.
Crocus
Small cups of purple, gold, and white that naturalize into cheerful drifts and feed early bees.
Helleborus
Long-lasting blooms in the depths of winter on an evergreen plant that asks for almost nothing.
Hamamelis × intermedia 'Arnold Promise'
Spidery, fragrant yellow flowers on bare branches when little else dares to open.
The big spring bulbs
As the season warms, the classic bulbs take over. Plant them in generous groups in fall and they return a little wider every year.
Narcissus
Reliable, deer-proof, and naturalizing, the cheerful backbone of the spring display.
Hyacinthus orientalis
Dense, powerfully fragrant spikes that are wonderful in pots by the door.
Early perennials to weave in
Bulbs do the early work, but a few perennials flower alongside them and then keep the bed furnished as the bulbs fade.
Phlox subulata
A solid carpet of color cascading over walls and edges for several weeks in spring.
Lamprocapnos spectabilis
Arching stems hung with heart-shaped lockets for a cool, lightly shaded spot.
Mertensia virginica
Clouds of sky-blue bells in dappled shade, then politely vanishes for summer.
Plan ahead: most of these go in during fall
Spring bulbs like daffodils, tulips, crocus, and hyacinths are planted the previous autumn. If your spring looks bare, make a note now to order and plant bulbs in fall for a flying start next year.
What is the earliest flower to bloom in spring?
By the bloom records, hellebores and witch hazels open first, in January, with snowdrops and crocus close behind in February. In gardens without those winter bloomers, which is most gardens, the snowdrop is simply first.
When should I plant spring bulbs?
In autumn, before the ground freezes. Daffodils, tulips, crocus, and hyacinths all need to be planted the fall before the spring you want them to flower.
Which early-spring flowers come back every year?
Daffodils, crocus, snowdrops, and grape hyacinths all naturalize and return reliably, often spreading into bigger drifts over time. Tulips are best treated as shorter-lived.
Design a garden with these plants
Open BloomsEye Studio with this guide's plants ready to drop onto a plan, then watch the whole bed bloom across the year.