Thursday, June 24, 2010

I planted tulips last year--they bloomed beautifully. Will they bloom this coming spring? or do they die?

I live in south central Virginia.I planted tulips last year--they bloomed beautifully. Will they bloom this coming spring? or do they die?
If they have received adequate nourishment while they were blooming and above ground, and have had enough of a dormant period this winter, they should bloom again with no problem. I would definitely think Virginia is far-enough north to accomplish this.





When they bloom again in spring, and the blooms are spent, use some bulb fertilizer as well as bone meal to give them a boost so they can save up lots of food for the next season's blooms. If they stop blooming, you may need to dig up the bulbs and separate them, as bulbs will grow smaller bulbs as a way of spreading.





Good luck!I planted tulips last year--they bloomed beautifully. Will they bloom this coming spring? or do they die?
Most tulips will re appear, but you never know.
With tulips it is always a crap shoot. I have been gardening for some 40 years and have planted tulips of all varieties, and sometimes they come back and bloom for years, and sometimes they are good for one year and gone. I find that the fancy tulips, parrots, ruffled ones, last for about one season and they are gone, while the older varieties last longer. I have some red ones that have been blooming faithfully for over 10 years, and I planted some Angelique once, and they did not come back at all the following year.





I worked at a garden center for years, and I once asked a Dutch tulip grower about this. He told me that is is just best to regard them as annuals, except for the species varieties, and plant them new every year.





He also said that in a warmer climate, like yours, and mine (zone 6b) that you should plant them deeper than the instructions call for as if they are closer to the surface of the soil, and warmer, they divide faster and ';run out'; in a short time. Cover them at least 8-10 in for the large-flowering bulbs.





If they come back for you, I would consider it a bonus.
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