This is an experience I believe most gardeners must go through. They want their place to look like the bulb catalog, and it seems so easy, plant once and the bulb comes back every spring right where it’s supposed to. The sad truth is that Tulips are absolutely stunning, just like their pictures, the first year, and then the next year you might get a smattering of inferior blossoms, and by the third you might see 3 or 4 leaves in the entire planting.
There are species Tulips that allegedly return year after year, but this is also a gamble because mice enjoy them and moles enjoy excavation projects.
I will say that in some sections of the country, Tulips seem to get whatever it is their hearts desire, and they come back just the way they are supposed to.
What I say is,
1. put in special beds just for the Tulips–in extremely prominent positions because they are such showstoppers
2. rip’em out mercilessly as soon as they are done.
3. this gives you a valid excuse, a ‘free pass’ if you will, to go to the nursery and buy a grand selection of really choice annuals–because you need to put something in the emptied bed!
4. This ruse works again in the fall, when you pick a keen new Tulip display for next year! Every year will be new and fresh, and every time you “have to do something about that bed”, you get to blame the tulips. It just doesn’t get much better than this.
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This entry (permalink) was posted on Saturday, January 2, 2010, at 4:52 pm by . Filed in NEWS and tagged Blooms, Buds, Didn't, Have, Leaves, This, Tulip, Tulip's, Year..
January 2nd, 2010 at 4:52 pm
Tulips should be lifted after they have died back each year, as they may not be getting cold enough prior to breaking ground , to produce flowers . Tulips need a very cold snap for approximately 6 too 8 weeks to develop good flowers before coming out , if you place them in an egg cartoon in the crisper part of your fridge for 6 weeks and then plant them each year, add some blood & bone and a handful or two of bulb fertilizer you will have gorgous flowers. Before you remove them for next season fertilize again while waiting for all the foliage to die back and this will ensure they have plenty of good nutreints stored up inside for beautiful flowers next year.
January 2nd, 2010 at 4:52 pm
Sorry to hear that you did not have blooms this year. I know how you feel. Did you cut down the leaves last year after the blooms were finished? I read some place that you need to do this so that the nutrients go to the bulb.
January 2nd, 2010 at 4:52 pm
They did not have enough nutrients to make flowers. How long have they been planted? You may need to divide them. Tulips get weaker year after year.