For those who endure northern New England’s long, gray winters, spring flowering bulbs symbolize hope: a warm and colorful light at the end of a long, relatively colorless tunnel.

Now is the time to plant many of the hardy bulbs that do so well in our climate. The term “bulb” is a general description for underground storage organs, although technically some are corms.

While tender bulbs such as gladiolus, canna and dahlia must be dug from the garden bed in the fall, other bulbs such as lilies, daffodils, tulips and hyacinth will readily produce color in the spring if planted during the next several weeks.

With the exception of daffodils, which like to establish plenty of root development before frost hits, bulbs may be planted until you can no longer get the spade into the ground.

All bulbs, with few exceptions, are very hardy, thus are perfectly suited to our climate. A one-time investment in some of the hardiest bulbs, such as the daffodil, will yield colorful dividends for literally generations. Other bulbs, such as the tulip, may be planted every year since, generally speaking, their performance declines in subsequent years.

While tulips aren’t as perennial as some of the other bulbs, hybridizers in Holland are working hard to increase their life span. Tulips that show the best longevity are those closest to their original parentage. These tulips last up to eight or nine years and have a smaller, less showy flower. Darwin types last about four to five years, with a flower emerging from the mother bulb every year.

Bulbs are among the most forgiving of plants because they are equipped to do well under almost any combination of environmental conditions. When you receive a bulb, it has almost all it needs to successfully produce a flower. The leaves of the bulb and the flower are in embryo form within the bulb. If you were to slice open a bulb, you would see the layers of leaves compressed against each other, and although you probably wouldn’t recognize the flower parts, rest assured they are awaiting development within the bulb. All that propagule needs is the proper environmental cues to set it into action.

Since they have essentially all they need to establish and provide a colorful display, bulbs may well be considered the ultimate landscape plant. Planting a combination of different types of bulbs, both tender and hardy, will give you a range of color and form throughout the summer. Spring flowering bulbs, such ass the tulip, crocus and hyacinth, are particularly adaptable to any landscape, because they flower before the leaves have emerged on the trees, and thus may be planted in areas that during the latter part of the season are in full or filtered shade.

Bulbs offer beauty and function in the home landscape: Tulips provide an incredible range of color and make a great cut flower; daffodils are fragrant and long-lasting in the landscape; lilies put on a show in the lull between spring flowering bulbs and summer flowering alliums. And don’t forget specialty bulbs such as crocus, grape hyacinth and snowdrops. Although these plants reach only about 2 to 4 inches in height, they put on a fine display and serve great purpose in the landscape, as they may become a ground cover over time.

Planting depth of bulbs has a great impact on the flower display they generate. Tulip bulbs, for example, should be planted at a depth of at least 4 to 5 inches. A deeper planting of 6 to 8 inches will produce more foliage and a better flower. Shallow planting cues the tulip into spending more energy for reproduction, and the mother bulb will put more resources into producing bulblet offspring. At a deeper planting, more energy is directed to flower and leaf production.

Once you’ve obtained your bulbs this fall, try to provide the best possible conditions until you are able to get them into the ground. A meat drawer in your refrigerator is the perfect place to store them. A cool room in your home or a shed would be an alternative. If you have to keep them outside, place them in a dry, shady area, out of direct sun.

And don’t forget: Try to offer them some protection against marauding mice.

Your questions

Q: I have an anthill under one of the shrubs in my yard. Should I move the shrub or will it be all right with the anthill nearby? J.J., Liberty

A: If your plant is in good health, it probably won’t be adversely affected by an anthill beneath it. Most ants are omnivores and will eat plant or animal material — especially decaying organic matter. Thus, if your shrub has deadwood, ants may be attracted to it.

University of Maine pest management specialist Clay Kirby says that there could be a negative effect on the shrub if the ant activity around the root zone of the plant interferes with root development. This is improbable, though. If your shrub appears healthy and continues to flourish, the anthill is probably harmless.

If you find ants crawling along the branches of the shrub, they probably aren’t harming your plant. More likely, they are “farming” the sweet sap exuded by pesky — and much more harmful — aphids.

Diana George Chapin is the NEWS garden columnist. Send horticulture questions to Gardening Questions, c/o Maine Weekend, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329. Selected questions will be answered in future columns. Include name, address and telephone