Spring wouldn't really be spring without daffodils somewhere in the garden. There are some wonderful dwarf varieties like Tete a tete and Jetfire for smaller gardens or planters. The taller varieties are so numerous that it's hard to pick a favourite. If you want something a little different, Thalia is a good choice. It's part of a group called Triandrus daffodils and has two flower heads per stem. The creamy white flowers have reflexed petals. If you have a lawn that isn't too manicured, it would be perfect for small species daffodils. The best sort for naturalising are Narcissus pseudonarcissus. That's a bit of a mouthful for what is really just a wild daffodil. Narcissus is the latin name for the daffodil family. For more wild areas like an orchard, taller varieties like N. poeticus and N. actaea are beautiful.

Many crocuses are also good for naturalising in grass. In fact, I always think they look so much better in a grassy setting than in flowerbeds. One of the best I have seen in this setting is C. tommasinianus. Forty Hall in North London, just inside the M25, is a great place to see bulbs in spring. The lawns are carpeted with crocii and the rough grass of the orchard has large drifts of snowdrops.

Unfortunately spring bulbs are often left out of planting schemes as most have to be planted in Autumn. Bulbs really only look good when planted in large numbers so buying them ready grown can be very expensive. Packs of 20, 50 and 100 bulbs are very cost effective and large groups can be planted fairly quickly in the spaces that appear between herbaceous plants.