Expert: Kenneth Joergensen - 5/2/2006

Question
THE TULIP FLOWERS I BOUGHT FOR EASTER HAVE FINISHED BLOOMING. WHAT IS THE PROPER PROCEDURE FOR STORING/REPLANTING THE BULBS? MY STATE IS CT. AND MY ZIP CODE IS 06450. THANK YOU FOR ANY HELP YOU MAY PROVIDE.

Answer
Tulips can be made to rebloom if you follow a set procedure.

I know you stated that you bought the tulips (persumably in a pot) for easter, but let me explain how you do this outdoors (from bulb to tulip) and then elaborate on the difference from this and the purchased tulip pot:

- in fall (october) buy tulip bulbs from garden centers and plant them 7-9" deep approximately 5 per sq foot.
- cover with soil and work some fertilizer into the top of the soil.
- always plant in a place which gets full sun in spring (e.g can be a place shaded in summer by broadleaf trees, but must be sunny in spring).
- In winter the cooling period (vernalization requirement) will be satisfied and the plants will start to grow in early spring.
- in early spring as the tulip foliage appear above ground, fertilize again. Then do so one more time just as blooming occurs.
- in late spring tulips will bloom.
- after the flower petals start to fall off, cut the flower stem (not the leaves) to avoid seed setting.
(e.g cut the long skinny flower stem)
- Continue to let the green foliage remain without removing it, cutting it off, or damaging it. The foilage is required to recharge the bulb for next years show.
- After the foilage has died back in early summer on its own (turned yellow and withered) you can cut it off (or tuck it off) and discard.

With tulip pots purchased for easter it is a little more difficult:
- you need to continue to growing the tulip after the flowers has died as above. Continue to water and fertilize regularily (using liquid houseplant fertilizer). Also give full sun. This is required to allow the bulb to recharge. Do not cut foliage off.

- After foliage die back in late spring/early summer, remove the bulbs from the pot and plant immediately approximately 7-9" deep. Do not water and do not fertilize.

Even so, store bought tulips may not always reflower as consistently as with tulip bulbs purchased in fall and planted in the ground in fall.

Most people treat the tulips purchased in pots as annuals and dischard. Then buy new bulbs in fall. However, it is a matter of nothing ventured nothing gained. If the tulips do reflower, you got a nice surprise. If they do not, then do not get too disappointed (it can be tricky to reflower store bought pots of tulips).

If you buy bulbs in future, try to go for the solid colors (white, red, yellow, pink) of the DARWIN HYBRID TULIPS (see lable). These tulips have the largest percentage chance of reblooming. Example: Pink Parade, Appledorn. Always buy bulbs which are as large as you can find them and as heavy as at all possible.

Most florists tulips are of the type "Triumph" (which repeat poorly). Also, the pot grown tulip bulbs seldom stay as consistently cool as in the soil which can cause many of them to split prematurely which is another reason it is hard to reflower pot grown tulips.

I hope this helped you.
-- Kenneth