Expert: Long Island Gardener - 4/26/2007

Question
It is April 25 in Virginia and I collected up bulbs from tulips that were dug up immediately after they lost their bloom. I clipped off the stem and leaves and now wonder if I should replant the bulbs immediately or store them in the fridge and plant them in late July or in the fall. Will the bulbs rot in the ground if I plant them right now?  

Answer
Tsk, tsk, Luben.  Never cut off leaves and then ask the AllExpert later what you should do.

Those leaves were the only way that bulb has to manufacture next year's bloom.  They are guaranteed a flower-less Spring 2008 unless you operate and attach them.  And something tells me you are not going to do that.

That said, Luben, I have to point out that despite what you read, the fact is, Tulips do not usually come back more than a year or two after the first big show.  The ones we buy today are bred for gorgeousness, for stem length, for color combinations we've never seen before.  Those bulb breeders don't give a hoot if they only bloom once or twice.

If you are an eternal optimist, put the bulbs in a paper bag and place in the basement, dry, dark, and cool.  A fridge is way too cold and damp.  And even worse, the refrigerator is where you keep vegetables and fruit; these emit Ethylene Gas, which accelerates ripening and destroyes bulbs.  They will rot in there.

Alternately, you can place them in the ground and keep them totally dry all summer.  They will grow roots in the fall and if you have a miracle, they will actually bloom next spring.

Next time, ask me first!  Just in case you're looking at Daffodils instead -- those come back year after year with the right TLC.

Thanks for writing.  Please keep me posted.  I'd love to see if something miraculous happens next spring -- I'd love to be wrong.