Where and how you can save tulip bulbs until spring

Tulips are usually planted in the ground in late autumn, but it happens that for some reason this was not possible. In this case, it is necessary to decide where and how to preserve the tulip bulbs until spring, so as not to leave the garden without these beautiful flowers. Preserving planting material in such a way that the flower shoots are thrown away by the bulbs is not a simple matter, and has a number of subtleties. But if these features are observed, it is not very troublesome.

Features of growing tulips

To admire the luxurious flowers of tulips every year, after flowering, the bulbs must be dug up, sorted and treated every year (or at least every other year). Otherwise, over time, they are affected by various diseases, pests appear in the beds and the plants weaken and may die. In addition, replacement bulbs tend to bury themselves deeper into the ground every year and, after a few years, removing them becomes problematic. It has been noticed that if you grow tulips in one bed for a number of years without digging them up, their varietal properties are lost over time.

Therefore, in order to preserve these beautiful flowers in the garden, at the end of June and beginning of July (when the leaves begin to wither), the ripe bulbs should be dug up, sorted by size and stored until autumn. They are usually planted in late autumn before the onset of persistent cold weather. For about three or four months, planting material must be properly stored at home.

Tulips feel great in the garden beds in winter. In case there is not enough snow, it is better to cover the plantings with tops, branches or straw.

How to properly store tulip planting material

It happens that in late autumn it is not possible to plant flowers in the ground - there is no way to get into the garden due to heavy rains, snow fell unexpectedly or frosts hit. In this case, it is necessary to decide where and how to store tulip bulbs in winter. The main task is to create such conditions so that in the spring full-fledged flowers bloom on most of the plants.

Where to store tulip bulbs

Tulip bulbs, which are supposed to be planted in a permanent place in the fall, are stored at room temperature (optimally + 23 - +25 degrees). They are poured into prepared containers (ordinary cardboard boxes will do) in a layer of 3-5 cm, and stored in any shaded place.

If planting material remains in storage until spring, then starting in August it is necessary to gradually lower the temperature to + 15 ° C, which is optimal.

Some gardeners suggest placing tulip bulbs on the bottom shelves of the refrigerator. It will indeed be possible to keep them intact, but after planting in the ground only some varieties will bloom, the bulk will be limited to only green leaves.

If the house has a dry underground floor, then this is an almost ideal place to store planting material. In autumn, the temperature itself will gradually decrease. In winter it is cool there, but the temperature usually does not drop below +10 degrees.

Can be stored in a cool pantry or on an insulated balcony.

Some gardeners successfully use cellars and basements for these purposes.

How to properly prepare planting material for storage

To preserve the bulbs until spring, they must be properly prepared and stored for the winter.

• After the bulbs have been dug up, they must be sorted by variety and size (sorting) and placed in separate containers. Particular attention should be paid to large bulbs (1 and 2 parsings); they are the ones you should expect full-fledged flowers in the spring.
• Planting material should be cleared of soil. If the bulbs are not intended for forcing, then it is useful to wash and disinfect them, for which they should be soaked for 30-40 minutes in a pink solution of potassium permanganate. This significantly improves the preservation of tulips. If damaged or diseased bulbs are found, they should be thrown away immediately.
• Peeled, washed and disinfected bulbs should be scattered to dry in a shaded place. Drying in a ventilated area is preferable to drying outside, as this will protect against unexpected precipitation. In addition, tulips “don’t like” drafts.
• After a week, the well-dried planting material must be sorted out again to remove any remaining stems, covering scales and small embryonic bulbs. If non-standard, damaged or diseased bulbs are found, they should be discarded.
• Leave the tulips to dry for a few more days.

This completes the preparation; you can place the bulbs for storage until spring.

Methods for storing tulip bulbs

If there is a large amount of planting material, then only fairly large bulbs are usually left for winter storage. The largest ones, measuring more than 3-4 cm, will fully bloom, the smaller ones will give small flowers or bloom in a year. Babies whose diameter is less than 1 cm are usually discarded.This is done not only because they are difficult to preserve until spring. Such small bulbs will be able to bloom only after growing for two to three seasons.

Bulbs prepared for storage should be scattered in one or two layers into prepared containers. These can be boxes or baskets. It is advisable that the container have a mesh bottom or walls to ensure good ventilation. Some gardeners store planting material by hanging it in small batches in fabric bags or old nylon tights.

It is not advisable to use cardboard boxes for these purposes, since, firstly, it is difficult to ensure the necessary air circulation in them, and secondly, they quickly become damp and become a source of fungi and bacteria.

• The ideal storage location is special ventilated thermal chambers, where the temperature is maintained automatically throughout the entire storage period. But such devices are quite expensive for home use.
• You can save most of the planting material in an ordinary apartment. You need to choose a dry, cool, shaded place away from heating devices and drafts.
• For better preservation, you can sprinkle the bulbs with dry sawdust or wrap each of them in newsprint. This significantly reduces the possibility of infection of planting material from rotten or diseased specimens.
• If you have a dry cellar or basement, you can store tulips there. To do this, you need to fill the boxes with neutralized light soil (forest soil or peat mixed with vermiculite is suitable), into which the prepared bulbs should be planted. In winter they will take root, but will not grow due to the low temperature. When storing planting material, it is necessary to protect it from rodents. Mice and rats love to eat bulbs.

During storage, planting material must be periodically inspected and spoiled specimens must be mercilessly removed. This allows you to significantly reduce the loss of bulbs.

The need to preserve tulip planting material may arise for almost any flower lover. With a little effort and following simple rules, it is quite possible to preserve the bulbs until spring at home. Your efforts will pay off with a rich harvest of beautiful flowers.