Also receive the 蜜桃恋人 Daily newsletter including gardening tips, weather, astronomical events, and more.
Planting, Growing, and Caring for Tulips
Planting
Tulips prefer a site with full or afternoon sun. In Zones 7 and 8, choose a shady site or one with morning sun only, as tulips don鈥檛 like a lot of heat.
The soil must be well-draining, neutral to slightly acidic, fertile, and dry or sandy. All tulips dislike areas with excessive moisture. Prepare the garden bed by using a garden fork or tiller to loosen the soil to a depth of 12 to 15 inches, then mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost.
Tall varieties should be sheltered from strong winds.
When to Plant Tulips
- Plant tulip bulbs in the fall, 6 to 8 weeks before a hard, ground-freezing frost is expected. The bulbs need time to establish themselves. Planting too early leads to disease problems. See local frost dates.
- A good rule of thumb is to plant bulbs when the average nighttime temperatures in your area are in the 40s.
- In colder northern climates, plant in September or October. In warmer climates, plant bulbs in December (or even later).
- To find the best dates, consult our fall bulb planting chart.
- Nature never intended bulbs to loll about above ground, so don鈥檛 delay planting the bulbs after purchase.
- In southern climates with mild winters, plant bulbs in late November or December. The bulbs will need to be chilled in the refrigerator for about 12 weeks before planting. (Bulb suppliers often offer pre-chilled bulbs for sale, too.)
- If you miss planting your bulbs at the optimal time, don鈥檛 wait for spring or next fall. Bulbs aren鈥檛 like seeds. Even if you find an unplanted sack of tulips or daffodils in January or February, plant them and take your chances. See more about planting tulips in winter.
How to Plant Tulips
- Plant bulbs fairly deep鈥8 inches deep, or about three times the height of the bulb. Dig a hole deeper than that in order to loosen the soil and allow for drainage. In clay soils, plant 3 to 6 inches deep instead.
- Space bulbs 4 to 6 inches apart.
- Set the bulb in the hole with the pointy end up. Cover with soil and press soil firmly.
- Water bulbs right after planting. Although they can鈥檛 bear wet feet, bulbs need water to trigger growth.
- If you鈥檙e planning to raise perennial tulips, feed them a balanced fertilizer when you plant them in the fall. Bulbs are their own complete storage system and contain all of the nutrients they need for one year. Use organic material, compost, or a balanced time-release bulb food.
- To deter mice and moles鈥攊f they have been a problem鈥攑ut holly or any other thorny leaves in the planting holes. Some gardeners use kitty litter or crushed gravel. If ravenous voles and rodents are a real problem, you may need to take stronger measures, such as planting bulbs in buried wire cages.
- Don鈥檛 lose hope if you鈥檙e planting your tulips later in the season鈥攋ust follow these tips.
Growing
- If it rains weekly, do not water. However, if there is a dry spell and it does not rain, you should water the bulbs weekly until the ground freezes.
- Rainy summers, irrigation systems, and wet soil are death to tulips. Never deliberately water a bulb bed unless in a drought. Wet soil leads to fungus and disease and can rot bulbs. Add shredded pine bark, sand, or any other rough material to the soil to foster swift drainage.
- Apply compost annually to provide nutrients needed for future blooms.
- In the spring, when leaves emerge, feed your tulip the same bulb food or bone meal you used at planting time. Water well.
- Deadhead tulips as soon as they go by, but do not remove the leaves!
- Allow the leaves to remain on the plants for about 6 weeks after flowering. The tulips need their foliage to gather energy for next year鈥檚 blooms! After the foliage turns yellow and dies back, it can be pruned off.
- Large varieties may need replanting every few years; small types usually multiply and spread on their own.
Catherine Boeckmann
ADVERTISEMENT
You can deadhead tulips after flowering and remove seed pods. Technically, you could grow tulips from seed, however, it’s a lot of work and also most tulips are hybrids so the tulips will not look like the original tulip you grew.
I rec'd tulips from my daughter. My question is. Am I ble to transplant them into the ground? The leaves are starting to fall & stems are getting yellow.
Transplanting bulbs outdoors after blooming can be hit or miss, but it’s worth trying! Get them in the ground as soon as possible and feed them with a bit of fertilizer to encourage growth. The foliage will die back on its own, but if the bulb is able to establish itself, it will come back next spring.
Either deer or rabbits have attacked my tulips as the sprouted from the ground. Will they still bloom or are they lost for this season?
Hi, Lillie, So sorry to hear this; we have had this same experience and in our cases, it has been bunnies. It’s not possible to know now if your tulips will bloom; it depends somewhat on how much of the foliage was consumed and maybe on the size and health of the bulb. You’ll have to wait and see. In the meantime, you may find solace–and a few solutions–here /pest/rabbits
When you put cut tulips in a vase of water, and they start to 鈥渨ilt鈥, put a penny or two in the bottom. The tulips will stand up straight again.
I just planted several tulips today in Georgia for the first time. I did not use compost just dirt. Will there be a problem with the tulips?
I live in southeastern GA. I planted some in fall and I just planted some last week too. I didn鈥檛 use compost or anything special. I planted them in tires with potting soil from last season. The ones from fall planting are already poking through, some are 3 inches already. Without compost and proper care, the tulips won鈥檛 be award winning and amazing but I鈥檓 just a hobby gardener to hangout with my kids (4yr old twins and a 10 year old). We grow some veggies and pretty flowers, they love it.
I purchased a home in September. The front yard has a large area of tulips. They currently have green leaves, but I suspect the bulbs haven鈥檛 been cared for in years. How should I care for them now? We are not free of frost yet. Can they still bloom this year?
My daughter got me a pot of tulips for Valentines they have not bloomed yet. I live in Oklahoma and we always have a frost before Easter. That comes in April this year. I have never planted tulips could you help me please
