Gardeners - bulbs?

Leslie

Leslie

Communistrator
Staff member
I woke up yesterday to a beautiful pot of daffodil, crocus and bluebells. The daffodils look like sunshine, they're gorgeous!

Anyhoo, I don`t know a thing about bulbs, I've never dealt with them before. So I don't know how to keep them.

I assume I just keep them as is till they die back, but if I want to put them outdoors eventually, what do I do when? Can I even do that?

Do I just dig and stick, or put them in the freezer/basement? Something else?

What has worked for you?
 
Sorry, Leslie. I know nothing about gardening in places that actually have real live winters. You'll have to rely on GF.
I know that around here we have to dig our bulbs and put them either in the freezer for those that like a nice winter or the garage for those that don't.
 
We leave our daffodils in the yard (they're all over). When all the tips on the shoots turn brown I mow over them with the lawn mower. The crocuses and daffodils in flower beds we just let die back when they're done blooming. This is the same treatment we used when I was a kid in upstate New York. They certainly seem to take no harm from this aggressive neglect. There are more around the yard every year.
 
Good good. That is what I was hoping for.

So...what do you think should I do with these? Put them out in spring and forget em till next year?
Store them in the basement or freezer?

?
 
we just left the bulbs be after we planted them. had to replant a couple, but the majority of them came back the next spring. our winters generally arent as cold as yours though.
 
ok...I`ll put them out once I can get a shovel into the ground. I suppose with those, temperatures don`t matter.

I can`t wait for spring!!!
 
As long as they are green, they're intaking energy for next year. Once they die back, or at the end of the season, mow 'em down. They'll be back next year. At some point, it's a good idea to dig 'em up & seperate the bulbs since they propogate fairly heavily.
 
I think what she's getting at is WHEN to take them out of the pot and put them into the ground...I believe there is a certain time to do this but do not know when that time is.
 
I don't know about up there but down here those plants are blooming in the ground now...so I would imagine that if I had some given to me I could put them in the ground now....so basically wait until you see them blooming in the ground up there and you should be fine.
 
Gonz said:
As long as they are green, they're intaking energy for next year. Once they die back, or at the end of the season, mow 'em down. They'll be back next year. At some point, it's a good idea to dig 'em up & seperate the bulbs since they propogate fairly heavily.
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The Farmer's Almanac says you should cut them while some of the shoot is still green rather than waiting until they die back completely. Re separating the bulbs, that's exactly right but I can't usually be arsed to do it. :shrug:
 
tonksy said:
I don't know about up there but down here those plants are blooming in the ground now...so I would imagine that if I had some given to me I could put them in the ground now....so basically wait until you see them blooming in the ground up there and you should be fine.
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I think you plant them when they're "hibernating"
 
You can. You can also plant them when they are in bloom provided the conditions are acceptable.
 
Good info here. I'm a big bulb fan!

When the danger of frost has passed, you can put them outside. Remember that they are not as protected from cold in a pot as in the ground. Put the pot on concrete if you can so it warms it from the bottom. Keep the foliage until it's crispy brown and can be removed by lightly tugging on it.

Plant them in the ground in fall. I planted about 125 tulips the first October we were here and they all bloomed the next year, it was spectacular. The year following, only 100 bloomed. Then 75. Now I'm lucky if I get 40 from the original batch.

The biggest enemy of bulbs is rot. Don't plant them right next to a concrete walkway or drain where there will be water run-off. The second biggest is squirrels. Except for daffodils, all bulbs taste really good to them.

Squirrels are attracted to fresh soil and will dig in it to find their treasure. They can also smell the bulbs that aren't planted deep enough. The only thing that deters them long term is chicken wire (as long as the holes are big enough, they will grow right through them). You can wrap them around the bulb.

Each of these bulbs gets planted at a different depth so when you're ready to plant in the ground, I'll let you know what you need to do. :)

Damn. I can't wait for spring. :D
 
wow .. I had no idea how much work was invovled in planting things. Around here, we stick them in the groud, weed around it, they bloom when they bloom and are, otherwise, little green plants. We don't have squirrels but we have mongooses ... luckily, they don't seem to like plants much. :D
 
nalani said:
wow .. I had no idea how much work was invovled in planting things. Around here, we stick them in the groud, weed around it, they bloom when they bloom and are, otherwise, little green plants. We don't have squirrels but we have mongooses ... luckily, they don't seem to like plants much. :D
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With such cold winters we have to be really careful if we want the plants to keep coming back year after year :)

So, GF, they are planted in the fall after the plant dies for the year yes? So I was right? It's during their "hibernation"?
 
so I can put them out on the deck for the summer and that`d work?

once the foliage is gone, I don`t water, right? or do I?
 
Nalani, I'm a garden fanatic so I heed all warnings and precautions and later figure out what works, what doesn't, and change my habits accordingly. People will say to put blood-meal or bone-meal in the hole when you plant them but I've found that that doesn't make a whole lot of difference with my soil. Same deal with pepper to deter the squirrels. It just washes away after the first rain.

The water run-off thing was something I learned the hard way. I planted 25 red tulips along the border of my front walk and none of them came back the next year. The non-reds came back so the only thing I could attribute it to was the rot.

Some bulbs can be really forgiving though so the whole throw-them-in-the-ground-and-forget-about-them can work too! It's certainly easier for the non-gardening or don't-have-time crowd. :D

Nixy, the bulbs themselves never really die, they just hibernate. They actively grow roots during warmer weather so most people plant them early in fall to try to avoid them rotting out before hibernation. It gives them enough time to grow the roots to store nutrients for the winter and allow them the strength to grow leaves come spring. The long cold period is required to get a good bloom. You can plant them in spring, but chances are that if they bloom at all, they aren't going to be 100% as if they had a winter of cool temps and established roots.

Then again, I know people who buy bulbs after the buying frenzy is over in fall when they're on sale, plant them in pots, and put them in their refrigerator in December. Whenever they feel like it, they take it out of the fridge to "force" the bulbs to bloom. The bulbs think it's spring because the temps are warmer than the fridge and they bloom. But the longer a cold period you give them, the better they look.

A few years ago, we had a warm winter and the tulips were a full 5 inches shorter than the year before. They also lasted a week less than they did the year before. It was a difference that I saw but most people might not notice.

You're making my need for spring kick into high gear. Must. Buy. Flowers!
 
Leslie said:
so I can put them out on the deck for the summer and that`d work?

once the foliage is gone, I don`t water, right? or do I?
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Yes, you can leave them on the deck. The squirrels might eat them though. :(

If you leave them in the pot, you may have to water occasionally if the rain isn't doing the job. If the dirt seperates from the pot's edge, you know it's too dry. If you plant them in the ground, you don't have to water it at all.
 
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