Once the flower falls off a potted tulip

by Moira Wright
(Australia)

Over-wintering potted tulips

by Ray
(Mississauga, Ontario)

I've been looking all over the web for some helpful advice on how to re-bloom tulips. I live in southern Ontario, on the 22nd floor, facing north-east. I planted bulbs in a large 15" plastic pot, very, very late (march'08) Not surprisingly, they didn't bloom, altho' many enterprising ones did throw up a few leaves. I let the scant foliage die down & kept the pot realtively moist right thru' summer as we've had a lot of rain. It's now gotten quite cold for this time of the year, with temeratures as low as -1C, & high of 7-11C. I plan to wrap the pot in bubble wrap to protect the bulbs from freezing, but cannot place the rather large pot in my fridge. Would it be okay to leave it out for the winter, which will go down to as low as -20C. My question is if there is anything I can do for the tulips to bloom in spring? Should I put any kind of fertiliser to feed the bulbs during winter? Or is this a wasted exercise??
Thanks for any help/advice you can give.

Doug says that feeding the bulbs now is a waste of time - you feed when the leaves are growing so they feed the bulbs.

You want to "chill" the bulbs for 14-16 weeks. But if you let them freeze solid - the odds are that they'll die.

You could bury the pot in the ground to further protect it and then dig it up again to bring it into the house. But leaving it standing alone (with only a bit of protection) is going to allow the pot/soil to go to whatever air temperature is around it. And that will be as low as your lowest temperature and the bulbs (that will take a lot of abuse in the slow moving soil temperatures) will be killed off by the fast up and downs in extremes.

Good luck with them.

optimal care potted pink tulips

by Jessica
(Honolulu)

I live in Hawaii and was given a very beautiful potted pink tulip plant for Easter. How do I keep it healthy and when do I start to "deadhead" it to add to my garden for next year? What does "deadhead" mean and how do I do it in easy steps?


Doug says there are two questions here - the first is "deadhead" and that means to cut off the dead flower (you do this by cutting off the flower stem as far down as you can reach with your scissors).

What you do step by step is right here in this article Frankly, I doubt it's worth the trouble or possible in Hawaii because of your tropical nature. Treat them as an annual - enjoy the bloom and then compost them.

Indoor Tulip Care

by Pip
(Malvern, Victoria)

I was given a gorgeous pink potted tulip that I would like to keep indoors. I plan to double pot it. I have a ducted heating system in the house and during the heat is on keep the plant in the bathroom. How often could/should I water it?

Doug says to water the soil whenever you touch the soil and your finger comes away dry. If you touch the soil and your finger comes away wet - don't water. There's no one-size-fits-all here - it depends on the soil, light, etc etc.

The finger test is what you need to keep in mind.

Tulips in Water

by Heather
(San Diego, ca.)

The tulips bloomed in wated in a vase. Now I want ot save them and plant later. Do I trim off the roots. how far do I clip the stem down and do you really freeze them?
Thank you,
Heather

Doug says that here's how to grow tulips in water - with tips for Norther and Southern gardeners.

My new apartment porch gets no sun.

by Karina
(Vancouver, WA)

I have 5 pots of tulips on my porch. 3 came up last year in my old apartment, and 2 are newly planted in the fall. The 3 that came up last year got morning and early afternoon sun. I get no sun on my new porch. The 2 newly planted ones are coming up fine, but the 3 pots from last year have leaves but no flowers.

Is this because of the lack of sun? Am I doomed to be tulip-less after this season, or is there something I can add to the pots to make up for the lack of sun, so next year, they all bloom?

If supplements are not an option, can I replace the tulips with shade loving bulbs?

Doug says that tulips demand full hot sun if they are going to produce flowers from year to year. If you don't have it - you won't get flowers. Sorry - there's no kind and gentle way to put this. :-(

And yes, you could think about shade bulbs (there are lovely trilliums and snowdrops etc around) to give you a spring show of bulbs.

tulips as a gift

by Jonathan
(Charleston, SC)

I bought my girlfriend tulips for valentine's day. I was wondering what advice I could give her to help her take care of them and prolong their life. We live in Charleston, South Carolina. Any advice?

Doug says he suggest you read this article.

Potted tulip dying in two weeks!

I received a potted tulip for my birthday two weeks ago and it has gone from having four tulips to none but dead ones and a tiny one about to bloom has died. The leaves have lightened and I don't know what to do? Should I repot, cut off dead blooms, and/or fertilize? Help?

Doug says you probably killed it by overwatering it. (or underwatering). It's done for the year. Follow the directions on growing tulips in containers for success.

Growing Tulips Indoors After Blooming

by Debbie
(Grants Pass, OR)

I bought tulips in a small container in Jan they are done blooming what do I do with them until I can plant them outside in Spring?

Doug says the article is here on how to grow any bulb indoors so it will rebloom.

Potted tulips frostbit

Got potted tulips for valentines, left them outside they got froctbitten. Can I save them? Deadhead? Force bloom?Live in central Missouri

Doug says that if the flowers are whipped, dying then that's it for this year. They only bloom once a year. Your option is to grow them again as per the instructions here or to toss them out and get more next year.

tulip bulbs forced in waterm not soil- finished blooming- now what?

I bought some beautiful tulip bulbs in glass containers from Costco a month ago. All of the bulbs grew green shoots and produced beautiful blooms. Flowers are now gone and shoots are in various states of yellowing, wilting. Can I reuse these bulbs? Advice is appreciated!

Thanks
Sunday

Doug says his best advice is toss them out. Don't waste your time trying to get them to rebloom. If you decide you really need to do this - read the articles on the potted tulip section - they will tell you everything you need to know about growing them outdoors, getting them enough strength and forming buds by cooling. Good luck

How often to water potted tulips

How often should I water my potted tulip?

Doug says you put your finger on the soil. If your finger comes away damp, do not water. If your finger comes away dry - you soak the pot. There is no "rule" for how often to water - it depends on your house heat, where the pot is, the soil used in the pot etc etc. But the finger-watering test works really well.

multi-use potted bulbs/annuals

by Jan
(Vancouver, WA)

I have horrible soil so I use potted plants on my many decks. I love tulips and daffs in the pots, but then I want to put annuals such as geraniums and petunias in the same pots. How do I deal with the tulip and daff leaves as I want them to come back next year and not have to dig them up and replant in the fall?

Doug says you don't. Unfortunately. The reality is that if you plant over top of them - and water like crazy to keep the annuals blooming, the bulbs are not going to be happy. The deal is to move the bulbs out of the pot and transplant (carefully) to some rotten soil. Move/replant at the same depth as they were in the pot. Ignore for the summer. Dig up and plant in pot for winter - store pot where it won't freeze solid but get cold weather for 16 weeks.

But trying to hold these spring bulbs in the pots over the summer and grow annuals over top of them isn't going to give you flowers next spring.

Or simply toss the bulbs away - and start over again next fall.

Tulips in a pot

by Aileen
(Aurora, CO)

Hello,
I received tulips in a pot (very small) as a gift. They just bloomed, and now they are getting big and I'm pretty sure the leaves are about to fade and fall. They are quite beautiful and I would like to not kill them. What do I do to keep them around?
Thank you so much for any advice you are able to give.
Aileen Schwarz

Doug says you might read the article right here as a good starting point.

can Tulips be grown indoors?

by Erin
(Tallahassee, FL)

Hi, I know very little about gardening and this question may seem silly. I was wondering: Can I keep Tulips as a House Plant? And If not I live in North Florida where is the best place to plant them outside?

Doug says you might want to read this article or some of the other articles on tulips here. You can grow them indoors if you start with pre-chilled bulbs or chill your bulbs in the refrigerator. But it's not easy.

Bottom line - you can't grow them outdoors in Florida - it's too hot and you don't get enough cold winter for this plant to set new flower buds.

Potted tulip care

by Ivy
(Hollywood, FL USA)

I received the above potted tulip plant 5 days ago and it started wreathing immediately. Does it require a cool temperature? Our place is kept warm, normally close to 75 to 78F or 24 to 28C. This is my first tulip plant and what's the remedy. Thank you. Ivy

Doug says that unfortunately, there is no remedy for this tulip. It's done. Those flowers are finished and the plant will not produce more this year.

Because you're in Florida- you don't have enough winter to keep the bulb cold enough to rebloom. (Unless you want to grow it in your frig for 16 weeks after you've grown it all summer) :-)

So - at this point, this potted tulip is compost.

Sorry.

Newbie growing potted tulips

by Kanchana
(Laguna Niguel, California)

Hello,

I live in Southern California. Just planted the tulip bulbs yesterday and I was told to fertilize the soil before I plant them. And I did. Just found out after I read more on it that I might end up killing the bulbs. Should I remove them from the pot and replant them in a new soil? Also, I am planting them in a pot. How often should I water? And how much? I have minimal growing anything and would love to make something bloom once. Thanks for helping me out.

Doug says you're growing potted tulips. No need to feed them because you're only going to grow them for one season and toss them away. (Getting them to bloom again is going to require 14-16 weeks of very cold weather).

As long as you didn't overdose them, they'll be fine. No idea how much you put in so can't say. To be safe, remove and repot in clean soil.

To water - soak and then water only when the soil is dry to the touch. Soak again - and only water again when the soil is dry to the touch.

That should do it if you give them lots of lights. Enjoy the blooms

Indoor Tulip Care

by Sharon
(Florida)

I have about 5 to 6 tulips that are planted in a pot. How do I care for them?

Doug says that the easiest way to learn how to care for them is to read the article right here on getting tulips to rebloom

How to water Potted tulips

by Jade
(South Africa)

How frequently should I water my indoor potted tulip and how much water should I give it?


Doug says that you water with the "finger test". Put your finger on the soil - if it's dry, you soak the pot. If your finger comes away wet, then you do not water.

Each individual soil and home will have different watering needs. A pot in a sunny windowsill will require more water than one in a shadier area.

So there is no hard and fast answer - there is only the finger test to see if the plant needs water.

Potted tulips in Lousiana

by Jessica
(Louisiana)

I got potted tulips for valentines. How do I care for them if it's not the right time of the year to plant them in the ground?


Doug says that I have some bad news for you. LA is too warm to really grow tulips in the ground. They need 12-16 weeks of seriously cold (like 35-40F) temperatures so they can form flower buds and rebloom.

Here are the instructions for doing this