Why there will be limited bulb availability this year

We're afraid that we have some bad news for gardeners.

It may not now feel like this was the case, but this Spring saw some extremely dry weather conditions. Although there were some torrential downpours, in general this was fast, one off bursts of rain that just went straight down the drains and didn't go deep down into the bulbs as was needed for them to grow properly. The soil remained cracked, hard and dry as there wasn't the consistent amount of rain that you would normally expect in the Spring.  

What this means is that there are going to be immense shortages of most types of bulbs across the board, as a lot of products haven't produced the levels of crop that was anticipated. In fact, there is as much as 40% shortfall in the overall harvest of bulb varieties.

So, what does this mean for people purchasing bulbs? Well, in short it means there will be limited availability in the latter part of the year. There are going to be less of the larger sizes of bulbs available for a start because they just haven't been produced. This is because there has been insufficient moisture needed to create that size of bulb, and therefore the people who would normally buy the largest size of bulb are going to end up of having to buy the next size down, meaning there will be less available for those who would normally buy that size, so they in turn will have to buy the next size down. Thus, a chain reaction will be triggered.

So, when it comes to tulips for example, around 85% of all tulip bulbs grown are for the cut flower market. Only 15% of tulip bulbs are produced for dry bulb sale. So, if the cut flower market can't get the size of bulb they need, they'll have to make do with other bulb sizes instead, meaning there will be less bulbs available for the dry bulb market.

Early bulbs in particular, such as daffodils, are being most affected by this. Later flowering varieties have actually developed a reasonable amount of larger size bulbs as the weather conditions improved for growing bulbs later in the year. But limited availability is bound to mean price increases, so we advise that people get their orders in early so as not to be disappointed. 

If you would like to know if the dry weather and the resulting flower bulb shortage is likely to impact you then please give us a call and we can discuss this with you. Boston Bulbs Wholesale is a privately owned business with over 35 years experience of importing only the finest quality horticultural products throughout Europe and from farmers and growers all over the UK. Whether you're a landscaper, nursery, local authority, wholesaler, retailer, private business or individual gardener, just give us a call on 01775 769 333 or visit / for advice about flower bulbs, grass seed and more.