I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

On 3/16/11 6:51 AM, mj wrote:
I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Where are you? What is your climate?

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary

On Mar 16, 11:17*am, "David E. Ross" wrote:
On 3/16/11 6:51 AM, mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Where are you? *What is your climate?

--
David E. Ross
Climate: *California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary

Sorry, I should have said. I am in Eastern North Carolina. I have done
a little looking and it seems I should have refrigerated them for 8
weeks before I planted? Seems crazy, I don't think the little local
stores have them in 8 weeks prior.

mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Very likely you planted too deep... give them another year or two...
bulbs will eventually adjust to their proper depth.

On Mar 16, 11:53*am, Brooklyn1 Gravesend1 wrote:
mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Very likely you planted too deep... give them another year or two...
bulbs will eventually adjust to their proper depth.

I don't think that is it. They are in burried pots that are at most 8
inches deep.

On Wed, 16 Mar 2011 09:00:52 -0700 (PDT), mj
wrote:

On Mar 16, 11:53*am, Brooklyn1 Gravesend1 wrote:
mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Very likely you planted too deep... give them another year or two...
bulbs will eventually adjust to their proper depth.

I don't think that is it. They are in burried pots that are at most 8
inches deep.

Why didn't you say that in the first place... you did not plant bulbs,
you planted pots. At the end of your growing season get those bulbs
out of the pots and plant the bulbs directly in the ground.

On Mar 16, 2:30*pm, Brooklyn1 Gravesend1 wrote:
On Wed, 16 Mar 2011 09:00:52 -0700 (PDT), mj
wrote:

On Mar 16, 11:53 am, Brooklyn1 Gravesend1 wrote:
mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Very likely you planted too deep... give them another year or two...
bulbs will eventually adjust to their proper depth.

I don't think that is it. They are in burried pots that are at most 8
inches deep.

Why didn't you say that in the first place... you did not plant bulbs,
you planted pots. *At the end of your growing season get those bulbs
out of the pots and plant the bulbs directly in the ground.

How exactly do the bulbs know they are in pots? What is the "ground"
advantage?

On 3/16/2011 2:52 PM, mj wrote:
snip....

How exactly do the bulbs know they are in pots? What is the "ground"
advantage?

The bulbs 'know' that they are in pots when their fine roots come to the
pot wall and can't go any further. Seriously, there are plants which, for
various reasons such as rampant spreading (bamboo) and seasonal removal to
a greenhouse (Brugmansia) , are planted in oversized pots which are placed
in the ground but tulips aren't in that select group. Tulips will benefit
from free access to soil moisture and nutrients and spread their roots to
the full extent possible before winter cold comes along and puts them into
dormancy. The very best grade of 'perennial' tulip bulb can be placed in
the ground and put on a good show for a number of years with no attention
at all beyond 'popping' the flower stalks after they go brown.

On Mar 16, 3:35*pm, John McGaw wrote:
On 3/16/2011 2:52 PM, mj wrote:
snip....



How exactly do the bulbs know they are in pots? What is the "ground"
advantage?

The bulbs 'know' that they are in pots when their fine roots come to the
pot wall and can't go any further. Seriously, there are plants which, for
various reasons such as rampant spreading (bamboo) and seasonal removal to
a greenhouse (Brugmansia) , are planted in oversized pots which are placed
in the ground but tulips aren't in that select group. Tulips will benefit
from free access to soil moisture and nutrients and spread their roots to
the full extent possible before winter cold comes along and puts them into
dormancy. The very best grade of 'perennial' tulip bulb can be placed in
the ground and put on a good show for a number of years with no attention
at all beyond 'popping' the flower stalks after they go brown.

Ok I'll buy that, makes sense, but I have had the same result in the
garden.

On 3/16/11 7:23 AM, mj wrote:
On Mar 16, 11:17 am, "David E. Ross" wrote:
On 3/16/11 6:51 AM, mj wrote:

I planted tulip bulbs last fall, although a little later than I
probably should have, and they look healthy but the stem to the flower
is 1/2 an inch long. What gives? This is not the first time I have had
this happen either. Why can't I grow tulips?
MJ

Where are you? What is your climate?


Sorry, I should have said. I am in Eastern North Carolina. I have done
a little looking and it seems I should have refrigerated them for 8
weeks before I planted? Seems crazy, I don't think the little local
stores have them in 8 weeks prior.

If you are in an area where the weather is strongly influenced by the
ocean (e.g., as far east as possible), you might not get enough winter
chill for tulips. They actually do best if there is snow but without
the soil freezing at the depth where they are planted.

Where I live, the annual average of winter chill -- cumulative hours
below 45°F from November through March -- is about 350 hours. We get no
snow. Even with refrigerating the bulbs for 6-8 weeks before planting,
we have to treat most tulips as annuals, discarding them after one
season of bloom.

Some tulip species, however, can naturalize in my climate. I have
"lady" tulips (Tulipa clausiana), which repeat reliably every spring.
But these are not the classic "Dutch" tulips.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary