How often have you heard someone say, “Oh, yes, tulips are beautiful, but they don’t stay that way, and I can’t afford to buy new ones every year or two?”
It is unnecessary to buy new bulbs every fall to have a fine display each spring.
It is true that old bulbs, left in the ground, produce little or no bloom.
They are split up into large families crowded lightly together without enough food.
But we discovered during the war, when new tulips could not be bought, and we were determined not to lose those we had, how to save not only one bulb but a whole new family.
Worn-out tulips no longer mar our garden picture, nor do old stragglers dim the glory of our latest additions.
How To Save Tulip Bulbs
How do we do it? Here are the different steps to remember:
Digging Tulip Bulbs
First, we dig the tulips while there is still a little green in the stems and lower leaves.
If they are left until they are dehydrated and brittle, the stalks will break, and you may have difficulty finding the bulb and removing it intact (it is so easy to slice into it with a trowel).
Digging early also ensures better skins on the bulbs.
Spread Out And Label Each Bulb
Each lot is spread out on a sheet of newspaper, with the variety name written on the edge, and allowed to dry in the shade until the stems can be easily broken off.
Some outside skin is removed from the bulb, but none still seems firmly attached.
The root base is left on until the bulb is dry and the bulblets have been removed.
Then, holding your thumb firmly against the old stem, you can pull off the roots smoothly.
Be careful to hold the base of the stem and the bulb when breaking off the excess stem to prevent any damage to the root base of the new bulb.
Guard Against Botrytis
To guard against botrytis, collect and burn all debris, both after removing stems and foliage and after dividing bulbs.
Allow The Tiniest Bulbs To Flower
If the ground is not available to let them develop, the smallest bulblets may be discarded, especially those with split skins, which would probably be dehydrated by fall.
But it is surprising how even the tiniest bulbs will give a lovely bloom the first year when given plenty of room and nourishment.
Some gardeners let these small ones flower, while others prefer to snap off the bud when it begins to show color, leaving as much stem as possible.
This allows the bulb to store all its energies toward an excellent blossom for next year’s exhibition garden.
Store The Cleaned Bulbs
We store the cleaned bulbs in old silk or nylon stockings—perfectly ventilated containers!
We tuck a label in with each batch and tie a string tightly between the lots.
If desired, separate stockings may be used to hold large exhibition bulbs for conspicuous foreground plantings and bulblets to be used in background plantings.
You’ll be surprised how much time can be saved by sorting the bulbs to size when filling the stockings.
Use a strong cord and be sure bulges are tied securely. Of course, you’ll want to be sure they’re not hung on a rusty nail that may pull out or break during the summer.
The stockings should be hung in a cool, airy place for the summer.
A basement is usually too cold and moist and an attic too hot, but the rafters of a barn or garage seem about right.
Take down the stocking bags in the fall, plant your bulbs, and have twice as many tulips next spring.
Increasing Your Tulip Bulb Stock
But before persuading you to become a tulip addict, we should warn you that once started, no matter how much money you save by increasing your stock in this way, you will probably go and spend it anyway as soon as you see the new introductions.
That’s what we do.
44659 by Catherine Hemingway Smith