Some of the spectacular spring-flowering bulbs, tulips dazzle the post-winter backyard with their vivid blooms. Plant these hardy bulbs in beds, borders and containers for a joyful burst of color and perfume come spring.
From delicate native varieties to scented giants, browse our full assortment of tulip bulbs right here. While you’ve made your selection, right here’s the whole lot you must find out about rising them.
What are tulips?
Tulips are vibrant, perennial flowering bulbs accessible in punchy reds via to delicate pastel pinks. They flower from mid- to late-spring alongside different widespread bulbs like daffodils, narcissi and early alliums.
First launched to the UK through the ‘tulip mania’ that swept via seventeenth century Europe, they’re again with a bang in trendy gardens. Grouped by flowering time, it’s simple to purchase a mixture of early, mid-season and late-flowering varieties to delay the color. Listed here are some our our staff’s favourites proper now:
- Tulip ‘Angelique’: These giant, pale pink, blousy flowers look greatest in teams, or picked and displayed indoors in a vase. Plant in containers close to your outside seating space to benefit from the perfume.
- Tulip ‘Greenland’: Develop this in case you’re after a harder flower. The attention-catching inexperienced and pink petals present excellent climate resistance and make an incredible mid-spring splash in your herbaceous border.
- Tulip ‘Flaming Membership’: Create a thick carpet of color with these multi-headed stems. Plant en masse for a placing mixture of white and cherry pink.
When to plant tulip bulbs
For the most effective outcomes, plant your tulip bulbs in November. You may plant them from late October via to the tip of December, however you’ll must get them into the bottom earlier than it freezes. Your tulip bulbs want a chilly spell underground to cut back the probability of illness.
The place to plant tulip bulbs
When planting your tulip bulbs within the floor, select a sunny spot with free-draining fertile soil. Group your bulbs collectively in the midst of the border to get pleasure from the most effective influence once they flower. To carry out a tough darkish space, go for a spread with luminous white blooms like tulip ‘White Prince’.
As a rule, keep away from uncovered areas. You probably have a wind-prone backyard, a short-stemmed selection like the gorgeous bicoloured tulip ‘Ice Stick’ might do higher than a long-stemmed one. Alternatively, plant your new bulbs right into a container and shelter them behind a wall or fence. Use a peat-free multi-purpose compost with a number of handfuls of sharp sand or horticultural grit to enhance drainage.
For a brilliant long-lasting show of color out of your spring containers, use your tulips to make a spring bulb ‘lasagne’. The layers of enormous, medium and small bulbs like crocus and daffodil emerge one after the opposite all through spring. Should you’re , see our article ’The right way to develop spring flowering bulbs’ to search out useful planting suggestions.
How deep ought to I plant tulip bulbs?
Picture: Tulip Pink Large from Suttons
As a tough rule, plant your tulip bulbs deeper than you’d different spring bulbs, aiming to get them at 3 times their very own depth with the pointed finish going through up. Tulip bulbs which are deeply planted are safer from pests like slugs and have a greater probability of repeat flowering the next yr.
Use a particular bulb planter that will help you get the correct depth. The device removes a core of earth, permitting you to drop your tulip into the soil after which simply re-cover. Create a incredible pure look in grass by dropping a handful of bulbs and burying them the place they fall.
The right way to look after tulip bulbs
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Straight after planting your tulips, give the soil a great water to settle it snugly round your bulbs. Preserve the floor weed-free to take away any competitors for water or vitamins. You may anticipate to see the information rising from the soil in early spring. As they develop, maintain your bulbs moist however by no means permit them to be waterlogged.
Because the blooms burst in April and Could, lower a number of heads to get pleasure from indoors. Should you’ve planted a container show, transfer your pots into a main place to get pleasure from their full influence. When unhealthy climate is due, merely lower your blooms to get pleasure from indoors or transfer the pots right into a extra sheltered spot till it’s over.
What to do with tulip bulbs after flowering
As your flowers begin to fade, lower the stems utilizing sharp secateurs. This prevents seed heads from forming and prevents your bulbs from utilizing up very important power that may in any other case go into subsequent yr’s flowers. Depart the foliage to yellow and die again naturally. Nonetheless, in case you’re rising native tulips with the aim of naturalising them, depart these to to type seed heads to allow them to self-seed and unfold.
When your container shows have completed flowering, you may re-use the pots by emptying out the bulbs and storing them via summer season. Clear extra soil out of your bulbs gently with a brush once they’re dry and retailer them in a cool darkish area till November when they are often planted once more.
Tulip flowers brighten any backyard area with high color in spring. They’re simple to develop when you know the way! Check out our skilled recommendation on rising tulips to see what our favorite on-line bloggers need to say about rising these spectacular flowers. And in case you’re after extra gardening gold, our rising guides have loads of recommendation that will help you fill your beds with flowers all yr spherical.
Lead picture: Tulip ‘Triumph Blended’ from Suttons
