Expert: Gary Bachman - 4/27/2005

Question
i just read your answer to lawrence in may2004 on what to do with tulips and daffodils after the flowers are gone. i planted tulips for the first time in october and they came up really nice, the daffodils are leftovers from the previous house owner and they are out of control. i wanted to spread them out some and started to dig some up to move them only to find at least a 100 or more bulbs and so i took them all out. i want to put some of them back in the space but am not sure when to do it and then do i plant them 1 bulb in a space or several in a hole as they seem to have been planted before. my husband says they bulbs multiply on their own...is this true?  

Answer
Ira,

I am assuming that the bulbs still have foliage on them.  Go ahead and plant them now at a spacing of about 6".  Try to plant them as deep as they were before.  Daffodils and tulips spread vegetatively.  These bulbs produce bulblets each year that grow and develop into new plants.  This is why you seem to have such a high density at each hole.  And as Martha says, it is a good thing.  (I hope you don't mind the Martha quote)

Good gardening

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