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Bulbs/Tuberoses

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Expert: Long Island Gardener - 9/18/2006


Question
I'm in 29204 - don't know the zone. I started with 2 bulbs in a container and now I have about 20. They bloomed the first year and this year, but now they are so crowded I need to separate them. Do I separate them now or keep them in their container and separate them in the spring? Also, will they survive in the ground in my zone?

Answer
My friend, if you are multiplying these tuberoses and they are blooming annually, I have to start out by commending you on a job well done - rarely do I meet people who pull this off and succeed in getting them to bloom.

Separation is a good task for the autumn.  Spring is an active growth season and you should avoid doing anything that will rattle the growth cycle.

I have to apologize for not knowing the odds of them growing outside in the South Carolina sunshine.  I am merely the Long Island Gardener and I am not an expert on plants in South Carolina.  That said, I think you should take this one step at a time and try to divide them, then keep them indoors protected with the same treatments as you did last year.  One step at a time.  Next year, give in-ground overwintering your best shot - mulch, select a very well drained location, and pray.

Utterly beautiful, these Polyanthes.  Utterly beautiful.

Bulbs

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Long Island Gardener

Expertise

Growing Tulips? Dahlias? Daffodils? Gladiolus? It doesn't get easier than bulbs and tubers. Once in a while, something goes wrong: The dreaded Narcissus Bulb Fly, which resembles a honeybee. Mosaic virus, which can ignite a field of tulips in a single season. Nematodes, lurking underground. Here on the North Shore of Long Island, the garden is full of surprises. If you live in the Northeast/Atlantic Coast, I can help you pick the right bulb for every season, indoors and out, and help you fertilize, bloom and harvest for home or work. How: I have degrees in related fields, but my best understanding is all learned from trial and error. For most of my 53 years I have been gardening somewhere. No matter what the problem, I've learned the best answers are always Organic -- Earth friendly, less expensive, healthier for people and pets, easier and cleaner than toxic liquids and powders that big chemical companies sell so smoothly.

Experience

Besides degrees in related fields, and a few favorite horticultural societies, I work as a docent at our local botanical gardens -- but it's the years of work in the garden that's the real test.

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