Questions About Growing Spring Flowering Bulbs

That really depends on where you live. Bulbs need several weeks in the ground to get their root systems growing before the ground freezes. However what you don't really want is for the bulbs to sprout above ground, because this will deplete some of the energy stored in the bulb to get it through the winter. So gardeners in the coldest zones (1 - 4) should plant their bulbs in late August and September. Gardeners in zones 4 - 7 should wait until the temperatures start to dip in September and can continue until early November. Bulbs planted in the warmest climates obviously aren't going to get a chilling period, so these rules don't apply.

That's a good question. Although the growing end will find its way up toward the warmth of the sun, it will have an easier time of it if it's planted in the right direction to begin with. Bulbs with pointed ends make it easy for you: the pointed end is the stem and it should be planted upward. Round corms and long tubers are more difficult. There are usually dried roots still attached to these, telling you which end should be planted down. When in doubt, guess - and trust the plant.

Mulch is almost always a good thing to do, it just depends on when you do it. In cold areas, we mulch to keep the soil cold. This is to prevent the soil from thawing too early and then refreezing, which makes bulbs and plants heave out of the ground. To prevent this, don't mulch until after the soil freezes.

In warm climates we mulch to keep the ground cool. Gardeners in Zones 8 and above can go ahead and mulch after planting and watering.

They can be, but it's not as easy as with regular plants. The best time to move bulbs is when the foliage is just about gone. The plant is no longer actively growing, the bulb is recharged and you can still see where they are. Take care when digging that you don't damage the bulbs themselves. Remember that bulbs tend to pull themselves deeper than they were originally planted and spread out. So start digging a few inches away from the plants and wait until the bulbs are loosened - don't pull on the leaves.

Of course. However you will either want to plant bulbs that don't require a chilling period or pre-chill your bulbs in the refrigerator for the winter and plant them outdoors in the spring.

All tulips aren't created equal and you need to experiment to see which tulips are well suited to your area. The popular Dutch hybrids prefer cooler climates while tulips native to the Mediterranean and Asia are better suited to warmer climates. Southern gardeners swear by T. clusiana 'Lady Jane' . In the north, Darwin tulips are some of the most reliable returnees.

Also, most tulips don't like wet soil during their summer dormancy. Planting them in an area of your garden that you don't water frequently will help their survival.

The rule of thumb is to give them at least 8 weeks of growing, after the flowers fade. You can cut back the flower stem, but the fading foliage is necessary to feed the bulb for next year's blooms. In fact, this is a good time to fertilize your bulbs, as they're building up reserves.

If you haven't hidden your bulbs among perennial plants that will fill in and camouflage the ugly foliage you can always interplant them with spring annuals like pansies, petunias and snapdragons. But don't tie the leaves into little bundles, as was the fade a few years ago. It might look tidier, but the leaves can't photosynthesize if they aren't exposed to the sun.

There's no fail safe method, but there are a few tricks you can try. First, use a synthetic bulb fertilizer rather than bonemeal; bonemeal is just an invitation to the banquet.

Secondly, you can use a box or cover of hardware cloth or chicken wire as a barrier underground. They sell ready made bulbs cages, but you can also do this yourself. The easiest way to do this is to plant several bulbs in at once, in a wide hole, and cover them with the wire, before burying. Be sure to bend the wire down about an inch on each side, creating a cover over the bulbs.

Unfortunately, neither of these tricks will do you any good once the plants emerge. Deer & rodents will still be drawn to your tulips.

Daffodils are still the most pest free spring bulbs you can grow. Nothing seems to be interested in them. And there are several other bulbs that are less favorable to deer, although as we all know - if they're really hungry, they'll try anything.