|
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small
bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. I know that there are perennial tulips, which are gigantic 5-6" bulbs that don't split for several years, but I really wanted some more unique colors that aren't available as perennial tulips. Are there any techniques for growing standard tulip bulbs as perennials? It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now
knowing that I will have to replant them every year. ____Reply Separator_____ Who the hell told you this?????? |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
In article , Pelvis Popcan
wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. I know that there are perennial tulips, which are gigantic 5-6" bulbs that don't split for several years, but I really wanted some more unique colors that aren't available as perennial tulips. Are there any techniques for growing standard tulip bulbs as perennials? It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) My tulips bloom every year. I plant 95% species tulips. I am no tulip expert but I don't think your representation is quite true. But many fancy hybrid tulips weaken rather than strengthen with each year. Some of the fancy hybrids perennialize instantly, others fade out & look yes impressive year by year, & when shopping for varieties you have to choose carefully if you want them to perennialize. From memory, but I think I remember this right, if you go for the Darwin hybrids, you'll have big beauties that perennialize with great ease. Or go my route & stick to species tulips. Some of them are just as showy as the million hybrids. -paghat the ratgirl -- "Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher. "Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature. -from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers" See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/ |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
In article ,
Pelvis Popcan wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year... [snip] I will have to replant them every year. [snip] That has not been my experience. I put in a bed of tulips 12 years ago in my backyard, and they pop up every year. I don't do *anything* to them. I don't dig them up and separate them, I don't take them inside, etc. They grow like crazy, and do fine every year. They seem to be thicker now than when I first put them in, but I haven't counted them. The only thing that hurts them are the deer, who have eaten them back three years in a row, now. billo |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Tulips are perennials to at least zone 5, maybe colder. You can leave them in
the ground though most people plant new ones every year. They will flower every year as long as you let the foliage die off naturally. Toad |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan
wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. Don't believe everything you hear. Learn to look up info on this here machine. I planted tulips 14 yrs. ago and they come back every year. zone 7 |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
c (TOM KAN PA) wrote:
I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. ____Reply Separator_____ Who the hell told you this?????? Tulips are true perennials, but behave more like annuals in the USA. I read about it in a book that I don't have with me right now so I can't reference it, but I did a google search and found a quite a few articles. Here's two: http://www.bulb.com/tulips/tulipfavs.asp http://www.dutchgardens.com/gardenin...p?copy_id=5297 My neighbors planted tulips around their trees and in a bed in their front yard. They grew beautifully last year. But this year, mostly just small pieces of foliage grew, and only a few flowers on plants that were much smaller than the growth from last year. After I read about the perennial nature of tulips in the US, to me this seems to corroborate the fact that the bulbs must have split and the small daughter bulbs only put up a leaf or two of foliage each. I suppose if I try watering and fertilizing only in the spring when they first start growing then again in the fall, and leaving them dry for the summer, they may regrow OK. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
In article ,
Marley1372 wrote: Tulips are perennials to at least zone 5, maybe colder. You can leave them in the ground though most people plant new ones every year. They will flower every year as long as you let the foliage die off naturally. Toad Does this mean that if the deer keep eating the tulips when they are green, they will stop coming up? billo |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
"Bill Oliver" wrote in message
... Does this mean that if the deer keep eating the tulips when they are green, they will stop coming up? billo By observation I've found that tulips that are eaten off one year will send up vegetative growth the second year with fewer flowers. If they are eaten off the second year, most don't appear the third year, but the ones that do survive the deer attack and send up vegetative growth will flower the following year if left unmolested. The deer seem to browse the buds and flower more than the leaves, which might account for survival after a couple years of browsing. As an aside, deer also browse lilies and seem to prefer the scented trumpet and orientals over the asiatics. They don't browse the foliage but select the flowers and buds. I think the scent from the flowers of both tulips and lilies is what attracts them. John |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Mine too. Zone 5
-- Jayel |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
In article ,
B & J wrote: "Bill Oliver" wrote in message ... As an aside, deer also browse lilies and seem to prefer the scented trumpet and orientals over the asiatics. They don't browse the foliage but select the flowers and buds. I think the scent from the flowers of both tulips and lilies is what attracts them. Hmmm... Maybe it isn't deer then -- I just assumed so, since I have caught the deer eating back the English ivy and munching on my vegetable garden. It's a hell of a note. I live on a 1/3 acre lot, and have seen six deer shoulder to shoulder in my back yard munching away. Anyway, my tulips were eaten down to about 1 inch above the ground. One small tulip had been pulled from the gound, and the bulb was laying on the grass. Whatever this is, it isn't just eating the flowers and buds. billo |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 17:40:03 -0500, jammer opined:
On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. Don't believe everything you hear. Learn to look up info on this here machine. I planted tulips 14 yrs. ago and they come back every year. zone 7 You may have planted Darwin tulips. Many tulips do not reliably come back, and they certainly don't in the south. Tulips also do not make bulbils and multiply. They are not reliably perennial. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
The main part of this top URL you posted is this:
"Tulips are indeed true perennials," explains Frans Roozen, technical director of the International Flower Bulb Center in Hillegom, the Netherlands. "Getting them to bloom in your garden year after year is no problem, if your garden happens to be located in the foothills of the Himalayas, or the steppes of eastern Turkey." On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 18:56:46 -0400, Pelvis Popcan opined: Tulips are true perennials, but behave more like annuals in the USA. I read about it in a book that I don't have with me right now so I can't reference it, but I did a google search and found a quite a few articles. Here's two: http://www.bulb.com/tulips/tulipfavs.asp http://www.dutchgardens.com/gardenin...p?copy_id=5297 My neighbors planted tulips around their trees and in a bed in their front yard. They grew beautifully last year. But this year, mostly just small pieces of foliage grew, and only a few flowers on plants that were much smaller than the growth from last year. After I read about the perennial nature of tulips in the US, to me this seems to corroborate the fact that the bulbs must have split and the small daughter bulbs only put up a leaf or two of foliage each. I suppose if I try watering and fertilizing only in the spring when they first start growing then again in the fall, and leaving them dry for the summer, they may regrow OK. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan
wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. I know that there are perennial tulips, which are gigantic 5-6" bulbs that don't split for several years, but I really wanted some more unique colors that aren't available as perennial tulips. My experience has been that while some tulips re-bloom for a year or possibly 2, they mostly disappear. Not at all like daffodils, which reliably multiply in place. Every year, I have *leaves* coming up, usually only 1 or 2, but not blooms. I never paid attention to whether they were advertised as perennial or not, and just chose from the pretty pictures. :-) Zone 7b. It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. I know that there are perennial tulips, which are gigantic 5-6" bulbs that don't split for several years, but I really wanted some more unique colors that aren't available as perennial tulips. My experience has been that while some tulips re-bloom for a year or possibly 2, they mostly disappear. Not at all like daffodils, which reliably multiply in place. Every year, I have *leaves* coming up, usually only 1 or 2, but not blooms. I never paid attention to whether they were advertised as perennial or not, and just chose from the pretty pictures. :-) Zone 7b. It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. Tulips common to our gardens in the present time are very highly hybridized from the species that was their parentage. That combined with the fact that most gardens do not provide conditions ideal for their long term viability is why they appear to be less perennial in their culture than we would like. The secret to successful perennializing is exceptional drainage, virtually no summer moisture, and sufficient cold periods through the winter. Species tulips are reliably perennial, the hybrids much less so, although I have some that have continued to produce for at least 10 years now, although their strength and numbers fade each season. I live in one of the largest tulip bulb producing areas of the world - we actually generate more tulip bulbs in the Skagit Valley of Washington State than are grown in Holland. Heck, we even ship 'em to Holland! The bulbs are dug each year after the foliage dies back, are sorted by size and age, kept in dry storage over the summer and are replanted (by machine - we are talking 100's of acres here) each fall. Bulbs that are harvested for sale are three to five years old, so those little baby bulbs you find if you dig up your own tulips do indeed mature to full size, flower producing bulbs PROVIDED they get the right conditions and care. Unlike narcissus, tulip bulbs do not split (or shouldn't - if they split you have damaged them in digging) or produce multiple "noses"- they do produce offsets or baby bulbs each year which is what is grown on by the growers to produce full size bulbs. pam - gardengal |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
"Bill Oliver" wrote in message
... Thanks! But be careful of referring to it, else the thread metastasize. billo Yes, I'm aware of that because I was the object of an attack by the an individual who referred me by using every word in "The Book of Slang." I also asked for credentials but received none. Enuf said! :) John |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Frogleg wrote:
It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. I actually caught the answer in the article I linked. The Dutch do it with special machines in bulb sheds. "Roozen explains that Holland's sandy soil, and the proven ability of the Dutch to perform miracles of hydraulic engineering (meaning they can get water to do just about anything they want), actually offer some of the most excellent growing conditions for tulip bulbs on the planet. To get the bulbs to not only return but to multiply (sort of a prerequisite for supporting an ongoing industry) is a bit more problematic. 'Professional Dutch growers subject their plant stock to an ingenious series of heat and humidity treatments each summer before planting,' explains Roozen. Developed over the past 400 years, this manipulation of temperature and humidity levels allows growers today to perfectly replicate the tulip's native habitat. By the time the bulbs are tucked into the sandy Dutch soil for their winter's sleep (and Mother Nature's 'cold treatment') the bulbs have been fooled into thinking they've been through another summer drought in the Himalayas! This is why Dutch growers always have scads of tulip bulbs to sell each fall, and the rest of us, left to our own climactic devices, have dwindling stocks. 'Don't try this at home,' warns Roozen, 'the process for temperature- treating bulbs is quite tricky, requiring years of experience and expensive climate control systems such as the ones you see in Dutch bulb sheds.'" |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
|
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 17:17:53 GMT, Pam wrote:
Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan wrote: It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. snip I live in one of the largest tulip bulb producing areas of the world - we actually generate more tulip bulbs in the Skagit Valley of Washington State than are grown in Holland. Heck, we even ship 'em to Holland! No kidding! You learn something new every day. bulbs are dug each year after the foliage dies back, are sorted by size and age, kept in dry storage over the summer and are replanted (by machine - we are talking 100's of acres here) each fall. Bulbs that are harvested for sale are three to five years old, so those little baby bulbs you find if you dig up your own tulips do indeed mature to full size, flower producing bulbs PROVIDED they get the right conditions and care. Unlike narcissus, tulip bulbs do not split (or shouldn't - if they split you have damaged them in digging) or produce multiple "noses"- they do produce offsets or baby bulbs each year which is what is grown on by the growers to produce full size bulbs. So what you're saying is it's probably easier (and cheaper!) to just plant new tulips each fall and enjoy the spring display. And hope you might either have ideal growing conditions, or one of the varieties that *does* come back/multiply in place. At least I can stop thinking of my lack of success as a personality flaw. :-) Thanks. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 23:33:28 -0400, Pelvis Popcan
wrote: Frogleg wrote: It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. I actually caught the answer in the article I linked. The Dutch do it with special machines in bulb sheds. When I read this, I imagined some Frankenstein factory where clay, straw, and dry ice were employed in a sort of dark, Rube Goldberg process to manufacture "tulip" (hah!) bulbs. The real story is much less exciting. :-( Next question: where did tulips originate? The Himalayas? Ah hah! just stumbled on: "They originate from Asia, their prime genetic centre being in the Tien-Shan and Pamir Alai mountain ranges, near modern Islamabad, close to the border of Russia and China. Tulips spread from these areas to other regions, including China and Mongolia and a secondary genetic centre was developed in Azerbaijan and Armenia." "Roozen explains that Holland's sandy soil, and the proven ability of the Dutch to perform miracles of hydraulic engineering (meaning they can get water to do just about anything they want), actually offer some of the most excellent growing conditions for tulip bulbs on the planet. To get the bulbs to not only return but to multiply (sort of a prerequisite for supporting an ongoing industry) is a bit more problematic. 'Professional Dutch growers subject their plant stock to an ingenious series of heat and humidity treatments each summer before planting,' explains Roozen. Developed over the past 400 years, this manipulation of temperature and humidity levels allows growers today to perfectly replicate the tulip's native habitat. By the time the bulbs are tucked into the sandy Dutch soil for their winter's sleep (and Mother Nature's 'cold treatment') the bulbs have been fooled into thinking they've been through another summer drought in the Himalayas! This is why Dutch growers always have scads of tulip bulbs to sell each fall, and the rest of us, left to our own climactic devices, have dwindling stocks. 'Don't try this at home,' warns Roozen, 'the process for temperature- treating bulbs is quite tricky, requiring years of experience and expensive climate control systems such as the ones you see in Dutch bulb sheds.'" |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Frogleg wrote:
"They originate from Asia, their prime genetic centre being in the Tien-Shan and Pamir Alai mountain ranges, near modern Islamabad, close to the border of Russia and China. Tulips spread from these areas to other regions, including China and Mongolia and a secondary genetic centre was developed in Azerbaijan and Armenia." Yep, they're actually a type of lily. If their petals opened all the way, they'd look like lilies. In fact, Dutch Gardens actually has some tulips that *do* in fact open way up and look like lilies: http://www.dutchgardens.com/sell.asp?ProdGroupID=16591 ....which they say behaves like a perennial in the USA. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
|
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
On Wed, 20 Aug 2003 01:04:52 -0500, Kevin Miller
wrote: Deer Suck {snip} Actually they are quit tasty when properly treated afield and by the processor. |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
Just reread this post and realized that I live in pretty much ideal tulip
conditions which is why all of Kamloops plants tulips in theur beds and forget about them. They come back every year around here. Probably most of northern US and all of Canada have the right conditions. -- Jayel in Zone 5a "Pam" wrote in message ... Frogleg wrote: On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 14:04:10 -0400, Pelvis Popcan wrote: I was surprised to learn that tulip bulbs split apart and form small bulbs that usually don't flower the following year. I was planning on planting a bed of tulips this fall, but I'm not sure now knowing that I will have to replant them every year. I know that there are perennial tulips, which are gigantic 5-6" bulbs that don't split for several years, but I really wanted some more unique colors that aren't available as perennial tulips. My experience has been that while some tulips re-bloom for a year or possibly 2, they mostly disappear. Not at all like daffodils, which reliably multiply in place. Every year, I have *leaves* coming up, usually only 1 or 2, but not blooms. I never paid attention to whether they were advertised as perennial or not, and just chose from the pretty pictures. :-) Zone 7b. It also begs the questions - how are tulip bulbs produced for sale in the first place? :) Very good question. Hope someone knows the answer. Tulips common to our gardens in the present time are very highly hybridized from the species that was their parentage. That combined with the fact that most gardens do not provide conditions ideal for their long term viability is why they appear to be less perennial in their culture than we would like. The secret to successful perennializing is exceptional drainage, virtually no summer moisture, and sufficient cold periods through the winter. Species tulips are reliably perennial, the hybrids much less so, although I have some that have continued to produce for at least 10 years now, although their strength and numbers fade each season. I live in one of the largest tulip bulb producing areas of the world - we actually generate more tulip bulbs in the Skagit Valley of Washington State than are grown in Holland. Heck, we even ship 'em to Holland! The bulbs are dug each year after the foliage dies back, are sorted by size and age, kept in dry storage over the summer and are replanted (by machine - we are talking 100's of acres here) each fall. Bulbs that are harvested for sale are three to five years old, so those little baby bulbs you find if you dig up your own tulips do indeed mature to full size, flower producing bulbs PROVIDED they get the right conditions and care. Unlike narcissus, tulip bulbs do not split (or shouldn't - if they split you have damaged them in digging) or produce multiple "noses"- they do produce offsets or baby bulbs each year which is what is grown on by the growers to produce full size bulbs. pam - gardengal |
New to tulips - didn't realize they were not perrenial!
"J. Lane" wrote in message . .. Just reread this post and realized that I live in pretty much ideal tulip conditions which is why all of Kamloops plants tulips in theur beds and forget about them. They come back every year around here. Probably most of northern US and all of Canada have the right conditions. Jayel, Actually, the Pacific west coast of north America, particularly east of the cascade and coastal ranges has a very similar climate to the inland regions of Turkey, where many tulip species are native. Like that region, you have cold, relatively snowy winters, and dry summers. If you looked at the climatic data for Ankara, for instance, you would find it nearly identical to your own. As is mine, in Spokane, Washington. I'm not sure that Canada from the Great Lakes eastward would be as great an environemnt for tulip perennializing, because the summers are so much wetter and more humid - but I suspect the cold winters are the most important factor. |
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 04:01 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
GardenBanter