Last fall, I had grand plans for my garden. I planted hundreds of bulbs and expected a fabulous show of spring color – a little bit of Holland right here in Maine.

After the nasty, cold winter, I couldn’t wait for my crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips to pop their little heads out of the dirt.

They never did.

First, I blamed the deer. Then, the squirrels. Next, I figured it was our puppy who has a penchant for digging. But when I started planting this year’s perennials, I found the real reason why they never bloomed. There I was, digging a hole for a silver mound, when a rank odor wafted up from the ground. I peeked into the hole and discovered a small, white lump that resembled really stinky cheese. It was a bulb, and it had rotted, like dozens of others I found that day.

That, my friends, stinks. And not just in the literal sense. I followed the directions. I bought nice bulbs – not the cheapies you find at discount stores. So why did my spring bloomers turn to mush?

I decided to ask the experts. I confessed that I started a little late (OK, it was probably closer to Thanksgiving than Halloween). I explained that it was ridiculously cold last winter. And besides, we didn’t have any snow.

Fortunately, my underground oracles – Lois Stack of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension and Renee Beaulieu of White Flower Farm, a Connecticut-based nursery known for its bulbs – agreed that my corm-tastrophe was a fluke. But they did offer hints for sure-fire bulb success (or, as sure-fire as you can get in these parts).

“We do have a tough climate,” Stack admitted.

But that doesn’t mean you can’t grow bulbs here. You just need to select the right bulbs or corms (crocus is a corm, tulips are bulbs), and the USDA hardiness zone is only one factor to consider. Hyacinths may be OK in zone 5 in theory, but maybe not in practice – gardeners need only remember last winter to see how temperature extremes can affect plant life.

“You need to pick bulbs that are hardy and if you want them to last several years, you should really look at that fluctuation in temperature,” Stack said.

Daffodils are the Arnold Schwarzzenegers of the bulb world: Hell could freeze over, but next spring, they’ll be baaack. Crocuses and grape hyacinths are also a good bet. Regular hyacinths, fritillaria and alliums can survive here in the right conditions.

Tulips, while widely seen, are more finicky than one would expect. Those marked as early-season hybrids will generally fare well here. So will single-flower blooms and species tulips, which are closer to wild tulips and are labeled with a botanical name, such as Tulipa tarda. But showy late-season varieties are a little dicey. When in doubt, Stack says, stick with Darwin, Darwin hybrid and Mendel tulips.

And if you haven’t started planting yet, get out there. Technically, you can plant until the ground freezes, but “at this point, you want to do it as soon as possible,” Beaulieu said. That way, the bulbs have time to develop a strong root system, which is integral to spring growth. According to Stack, you can plant them through mid-October and have very good results, but anytime after that is pushing it. As a rule of thumb, once the average daily temperature hits 60 degrees F (add the daytime high and the nighttime low and divide it in two), it’s safe to plant.

“When you see bulbs in the garden center, it’s already time to plant them,” Stack said.

But when you see them, what should you look for? To the untrained eye, they all look the same, but Stack said top-size bulbs are worth the extra money. If a bulb is too small, it may not have enough energy to last through the winter. Smaller bulbs are also less likely to produce a full-size flower. If you live in a moderate climate, bulbs generally get bigger and better over the years, but that isn’t the case here.

“In Maine we don’t have that luxury,” Stack said. “We need to buy really good bulbs because when we buy them, they’re the best they’re going to get. They’re never going to be that good again.”

To protect your investment, be sure to plant the bulbs in well-drained soil. If you’re planting them in an existing garden, the soil should be fine, but if you’re creating a new bed, you should enrich the soil with compost. Beaulieu recommends planting tulips in the vegetable garden after you pull out your tomatoes and beans.

When you plant them, there are any number of formulas for determining the depth. Beaulieu recommends digging a hole three times as deep as the diameter of the bulb. But Stack says in our climate, planting bulbs a little deeper will protect them from a heavy frost. Large bulbs (tulip, daffodil and hyacinth), should be buried 6 to 8 inches deep. Plant small bulbs (crocus, grape hyacinth and scillas) up to 5 inches deep – any deeper and they won’t have the oomph they need to break through in the spring.

For novices, the pointy side should be on top, but if you plant a few the wrong way, they’ll right themselves. Once they’re in the ground, water them once to encourage root growth. If it’s a dry fall, water them a few more times before the ground freezes. Otherwise, let them be. Cover them with a layer of garden mulch or evergreen boughs.

Though it may seem like a good idea to plant bulbs near the foundation of your house because it’s warmer there, it’s a mixed blessing. They’ll weather the winter better and they’ll come up earlier in the spring, but if it’s a quick thaw, once the temperatures dip again, the leaves will become damaged. However, because bulbs have retractile roots, they’ll pull the plant back into the ground so the flower will be protected.

A location with full sun or light shade is ideal, and if you can plant bulbs beside larger perennials, they’ll hide the wilted foliage (which should be left on at least six weeks after the bulb flowers, no matter how bad it looks), and protect the leaves from the scorching summer sun.

It won’t hurt to overplant, Beaulieu says, especially if you’re just starting out. She also recommends pairing bulbs with perennials because it’s easier and more interesting than a huge bed of bulbs.

“It’s a lot more fun and doable at home to just plant six here and six there,” Beaulieu said.

Stack agrees. She particularly likes planting a few bulbs between clusters of lilies, which start to come up just as the daffodils are fading.

“I think that’s the challenge of gardening,” Stack said, “to figure out systems that work.”

Now, armed with a few hundred bulbs and a bunch of expert advice, I intend to figure out a system that will work in my garden. This time, I’m confident that my good bulbs won’t go bad. I have every intention of reviving my grand plans for brilliant spring blooms. Holland west, if you will.