Bulb Shortage on the Local Markets

[Ann B.]

There were very few bulbs for sale this fall. I am not sure why except that I suspect it was due to the hurricanes. I suspect that some of the distributors were wiped out or heavily damaged.

I really don't know. Even Sam's Club did not offer bulbs or perennials of any kind, and WOW, I do miss the late season sales.

I did finally break down and purchase one of the double 'Red Peacock' amaryllis kits for Mama. I checked to make sure the bulb had not already started blooming in the box. The bad thing is that it has a water vase with black rock, and I know Mama will want to plant it in her garden this spring. So... Now, I need to find a pretty pot for it so that it can bloom this winter for her.

Hush! Don't tell her. It's a surprise. Not a Christmas gift, but a get well gift. She won't be able to get around for awhile after her surgery.

Did anyone else find a shortage of bulbs this year? Or is it just the south?

[Dazed_Lily]

Ann- I noticed a much smaller selection of after season bulbs this year. But I didn't know if maybe the stores just ordered less.
Also, while less--some stores have less than others(within the same chain). The Wally World near work had daffodil bulbs and dutch iris and loose amaryllis bulbs. The bagged daylilies and iris were dried to dust. I bought a Minerva and mailed it to my Mom --she is so tickled by watching amaryllis grow. I had bought her a red one(sorry can't recall name at the moment-it's probably in another post) when I was there at the end of Sept and potted it for her. With Minerva, Mom potted it. I'm proud of her for doing that(she doesn't get around well). I also bought a bag of 36 Dutch Iris bulbs--they are quite large and I got them for $2.50 after some negotiating. The bulbs at the WW near me are dry and there is not much variety --maybe some daffs. They have lots of boxed amaryllis. Many have shot through the box tops and are blooming in the display !
This time last year I was buying lily bulbs at discount but lily bulbs disappeared very early on ! So, perhaps the weather did affect the quantity of bulbs. Maybe even the price of fuel. (I think we will see the affect of fuel prices in some very unexpected ways. For example, hubby got a call from the place where he gets his hair cut telling him the price would go up $5. I told him that I bet the hairdresser , who rents boothspace, is getting a rent increase. And that is probably because the owner is anticipating having a higher utility bill. )
Let's see if anyone else has noticed less bulbs .....