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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
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Can I dig bulbs and place them in a container? I will not be planting again in the yard. How deep should the soil be in the container? Should I water or not? Can the container be left on the east facing deck on my house?
Is this advisable?
is horse manure ok to fertilize
My daughter gave us tulips from Holland and have directions for forcing them in a pot. It is spring here in nj .. Can we plant them directly into the ground?
Tulip season is ending now. Are they bulbs? If so, then, yes, you could plant the bulbs in the ground and end up with a foliage plant, but it won’t provide blooms until the following spring.
I live in the Denver area and our Spring weather here is unpredictable! How much water do tulips need in the spring? I haven't had much luck with tulips (your article helped me figure out why) except for one spot under a shady Pear tree. I attributed my bad luck to not watering them enough in the spring - now I'm hand watering every little tulip stand everyday or so obsessively - but I don't know how much they need. Thank you for your help!
If you’re getting regular rain showers (1-2 times a week), you shouldn’t have to water the tulips at all. If it’s truly dry out, then you can water them once a week, giving them 1 to 2 inches of water. Before watering, check the soil around them. The top 1/2-inch of soil (at least) should be dry before you water again. Tulips can rot easily, so you shouldn’t need to water them everyday unless it’s very very hot and dry outside.
We just moved to SC and have so much sand and no rich soil. I have no idea how to plant my flowers and really miss having beautiful flowers spring and summer. What do I do?
First, you will need to add substance to your sandy soil and improve water retention with some potting soil or compost. Mix in 2 to 3 inches of composted leaf mold, peat moss, manure, or a peat moss-based potting soil. And look for flowers and plants that are drought-tolerant. For example, consider Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella) and Black-Eyed Susans Rudbeckia). For a flowering shrub, consider Indian Hawthornes (Rhaphiolepis). Contact your SC cooperative extension for more local advice.
How to care for stents blooms and bulbs for next season?
