Hi,
I bought a heap of spring-flowering bulbs, tulips mainly, last year and never got around to planting them. They are all still in the bags they came in and some have started to shoot. Is it too late to plant these now? Is there a way I can store them (without planting) until next season? We're talking about 200+ bulbs here, so something that's not going to take a lot of time would be best. TIA...
Cheers, Steve.
Best thing to do is plant them, with the understanding that most won't bloom. You could also pot them and pay close attention to those pots in hot weather, but you said "less work"...
Hi Doug, thanks for the info. Is the reason that most of them will probably not bloom because they never got chilled, like they would have had they been planted in the ground? The bulbs were stored in my laundry over winter, so they probably never saw temps below about 65.
Cheers, Steve.
That's most of the reason, I suppose. And, they've had no time to make roots. You may get some flowers, but don't expect miracles this year. By the way, the reason for planting them is for moisture control. I've forgotten to plant a few bulbs over the years. Sometimes they shrivel or get moldy, and other times, they're fine. The reason is clearly lack of attention on my part - I could've kept them in good shape if I'd tried. It's much easier to just put them in the ground.
Steve, you might get a bang out of giving them to a Kindergarden class at your local school. Kids that age like to watch thigs grow.
BetsyB
Go ahead and plant them now... if you need to do it in a hurry, scoop out decent depression and put 'em all in, and cover with soil... you can dig them up next fall and replant "properly". Right now, even the ones that look dormant are metabolizing, using their stored reserves. Might as well give them a chance to replenish what they can with photosynthesis. There's a fair chance with storage at about 65o, they're already pretty well through most of their reserves. Getting them in the ground now will give them the best chance.
Oh, and if you want easy digging next fall, you can cover them with, say,
50-50 sand and compost. They'd probably appreciate a little fertilizer, too, especially when you replant next fall.Kay
If you live in an area where Tulips are not Perennial (ie, not enough cold to make them bloom), then you can pack them in shipping boxes with tons of peat moss and store them somewhere cool (if possible). The peat usually keeps them from rotting, the cool keeps them from sprouting.
Here in Texas, storing in a cool place is not an option if you actually want to have food in your refrigerator. We toss them.
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