Spring bulbs in garage or root cellar

Hi, I'm new here. I purchased new spring bulbs this fall for container planting (not forcing) and want to over-winer safely. I put them (various alliums mostly) in terra cotta pots, watered them and them put them in a cold root cellar. I want to know whether they would be better off in my attached garage which is colder. I don't want them to sprout early but I also don't want them to freeze. Any suggestions/experience? I'm in Sudbury, Ont. zn 3b-4a

thanks,
chris

 

the bulbs need at least 13 weeks of cold period, and will need about 2-3 weeks outof the cold to begin to grow, so count backwards from the date that you wnat them to be in bloom and thats when they should go into cold storage. the root cellar should be cool enough you don't want the soil to freeze just stay cool.

 

thanks, James.
One more thing..
I put these bulbs in the root cellar in mid November. Will I see premature sprouting because I've put them in too early or, in your experience, will they remain dormant until they are removed and taken to a sunnier location in May? (These are late-flowering alliums?)
thanks,
tf

 

they will begin to grow when they want to, there isn't really anything you can do to stop them. they don't generally sprout early, but they might its up to thier internal clock.