Tulip Trials

Every fall gardeners buy tulips, and every spring I read blog posts complaining about tulips.

-so says Kathy of Cold Climate Gardening.

It is time to read the fine print on tulip growing, and Kathy gives some pointers to think about.
I’ve written about tulips and I’m one of those people that loves them and grows them. I do have to say that I grow far less of tulipa than I used to when living in the city and gardening on what was formerly woodland ground.

You can learn two ways in this business of gardening: trial and error, or research. Most of us have a mix of the two. My main addition to what Kathy had to say on the topic is that there are varieties of tulips that are more long lasting than others, as long as they get the basic growing conditions she talked about.

As in everything gardening, if you are not sure, just start out small, maybe have a trial garden space (I had one of those, which eventually turned into a permanent garden bed).

Quick steps to planting tulipsHow To Plant Tulips Reminder

What kind of complaints are usually registered against tulips?

The foliage, which must remain after blooming for the next years flowers. People don’t like the clunky leaves withering in the garden. Solution? Over plant with perennials that leaf out later than the flowers but before the leaves of the bulbs become an eyesore. ( Hostas or daylilies, for example).

They run out. No, not as in “sprouting legs”, but they don’t flower, and then don’t show up at all, in following years. Solution: plant “perennial types”.

Those are the two main complaints, provided that the gardener did not plant them in a poorly drained or too shady spot.

Want to read my thoughts on tulips?