How to properly plant tulips in winter

Tulips

Tulips are a favorite flower among many gardeners. They are beautiful, easy to care for, bloom in early spring, and survive the winter well outdoors.

Even an inexperienced gardener can easily cope with these flowers, but it is important to choose, When to plant tulips before winter in autumnTheir growth and flowering, the formation of flowers and subsequent bulbs depend on this.

The best time

You can determine when to plant tulips in the fall (in which month and location) based on their developmental characteristics: they require cool temperatures for rapid growth. During the cool autumn months, growth processes are activated, roots form, and the plant itself actively stores nutrients. With the arrival of spring, the flowers grow rapidly, and the plant develops well, which is reflected in the buds.

Spring planting is less beneficial. The lack of a "cold" period negatively impacts the appearance of the plants (they grow thinner and weaker) and the quality of the future bulbs.

The best time to plant is mid-September to late November, depending on the specific region and climate. Planting too early (in late summer or early fall) will result in bulbs sprouting, frostbitten shoots, and flower rot. Planting too late will result in the bulbs freezing and preventing rooting.

Advice!

When choosing when to plant tulip bulbs in the fall, remember that it takes about 1.5 months for them to root. If frost or prolonged rain occurs during this period, the tulips will likely die and not survive the winter.

When choosing the time to plant tulips in winter, The following points are worth paying attention to:

Region. In the north (Siberia and the Northern Urals), it's best to plant tulips in the first half of autumn, while in the southern regions of Russia and Ukraine, it's best to plant them in the second half. For central Russia, it's best to plant before the end of October.
Weather. Prolonged rains or early frosts can destroy the bulbs before they even take root.
Frost is approaching. There should be approximately 7-8 weeks left before the ground freezes and serious cold sets in.
Air temperature. It should be approximately +3-5 degrees.
Soil temperature. At a depth of 10 cm, it should not exceed 8-10 degrees Celsius.

Fact!

It's worth noting that even if planted at the wrong time (for example, too early), flowers can still germinate and bloom, but they will look worse, and the future bulbs will be less viable.

Requirements for the location

Choosing a good planting site is equally important. It's important not only to create a beautiful and convenient garden bed, but also to select good soil and a plot suitable for flowers.

When choosing The following points should be noted:

You need to choose a sunny, well-lit area, protected from the wind.
It's best to plant tulips on a raised bed or at a slope to allow excess water to drain. Low-lying areas or overly wet soils are unsuitable, as the bulbs will rot. In the latter case, it's best to create raised beds.
The soil should be loose, well-drained, and slightly alkaline or neutral. Acidic soil is not suitable.
Sandy loam and loamy soils are suitable. If the soil is clayey and excessively heavy, it can be improved by adding peat or river sand (5 kg per square meter). If it is sandy, add clay chips (approximately a bucket per square meter).
You shouldn't plant tulips in beds where cucumbers, zucchini, melons, tomatoes, watermelons or asters were previously grown.

Advice!

When choosing the size of a flowerbed, consider the desired effect. For example, to achieve a "carpet" effect, you'll need up to 100 bulbs per square meter.

Soil preparation

Simply planting the bulbs in the ground isn't enough. You also need to prepare the soil and, if necessary, improve it to help the bulbs germinate and take root faster.

Preparation consists of several steps:

A month before planting, thoroughly dig the area to a depth of 25-30 cm and clear it of roots and weeds. This advance preparation allows the soil time to settle; overly loose soil can damage fragile roots.
Then apply a special bulb fertilizer or prepare your own. The latter consists of 5 kg of compost (or well-rotted manure), 200 grams of wood ash, 50 grams of superphosphate, and 15 grams of ammonium acid. This amount is applied per 1 square meter of soil.
If necessary, clay or sand is added to improve the soil itself.
Two days before planting, the soil is watered to ensure complete settling.

Important!

Before planting, water the soil again with a weak solution of potassium permanganate or a fungicide. This will help kill harmful microorganisms. For the same purpose, you can soak the bulbs in a solution of potassium permanganate for half an hour immediately before planting.

Checking the seed material

Planting tulips in the fall in the Leningrad Region and other regions begins with inspecting and culling the planting material. Rotten, dry, or damaged bulbs, as well as those with mold, spots, or cracks, are best discarded. Ideally, the diameter of the selected material should be approximately 3-4 cm.

The brown skin should be intact, the stem rudiment visible but not sprouted, and the base of the bulb should be firm, with root nodules. If the base is soft or roots have appeared, the bulb is not suitable for planting.

Immediately before planting, it's a good idea to sort the seeds by size and plant them in groups. This will prevent the larger flowers from crowding out the weaker ones.

Main works

Pre-prepared soil doesn't require any special arrangements. However, the gardener should plan ahead for how exactly they will arrange the flowers. They can be planted in individual holes or furrows. The former option is advantageous if there are few tulips, they are of different sizes, or they need to be planted between existing flowers. Furrows (or longitudinal rows) allow for large quantities of material to be planted in a pattern.

The landing is carried out in several steps:

First, make depressions in the soil—holes or rows. Their depth depends on the size of the bulbs themselves and can range from 5 to 15 cm. When choosing the depth to plant tulips in the fall and, accordingly, the depth to dig the holes, it's best to use the formula: depth = 3 times (the height of the bulb). For example, for a 3 cm tall bulb, the depth is 9-10 cm.
The distance between bulbs should be 8-15 cm. The exact figure depends on the purpose: to create a lush bed or fill a pattern, it can be 8-10 cm, but it is better to stick to a larger distance - 10-15 cm.
The distance between rows should be at least 25-30 cm.
To improve the soil and its drainage properties, you can pour a layer of river sand (1-2 cm) onto the bottom of the hole and “cover” it with a layer of soil on top.
To protect against mice, the bottom of the bulb should be coated with birch tar or Vishnevsky ointment.
The bulbs are planted upside down or sideways, pressing down lightly so that they sink slightly into the soil without damaging the roots. This is necessary to eliminate air pockets under the bulbs.
The holes are filled with soil and leveled. If the tulips are left uncovered, water will accumulate in the hole, leading to rotting.
If the weather is dry and warm, it is advisable to water the bed after a few days so that the roots can form properly.

The flowers won't require any further care. Don't cover them with anything after planting, otherwise they'll quickly grow and emerge just in time for the cold weather. The exception: severe frost, which can kill weak, unrooted bulbs.

It's important to note that cultivar tulips are more demanding and still require some additional care. They need to be fertilized 2-3 times per season, using mineral fertilizers. This should be done before the snow melts (by scattering dry fertilizer over the snow), after germination, and after flowering.

Unforeseen situations

Sometimes the weather turns abrupt or gardeners don't have time to plant their seeds. In such situations, many abandon their flower planting plans or risk planting them in the spring.

But sometimes the situation can be corrected differently:

If the planting deadline is approaching, but the ground hasn't frozen yet, you can plant the flowers and cover them with spruce branches, compost, or dry leaves for protection. If winters don't have much snow, you'll need to cover them with additional snow.
The second option is to plant the seeds in individual containers at your dacha. Store the rooted plants in a cool place (a basement or balcony) until spring, then plant them in the ground in the spring. Add a layer of drainage material (at least 5 cm) to the bottom of the container, cover with soil, plant the bulbs, water, and leave in a warm place (at room temperature) for 3 weeks to root. Then, store the container in a cool place.
Some gardeners prefer to plant bulbs in special baskets for bulbous flowers. Unlike regular solid containers, these are designed with holes. In the spring, the baskets themselves can be buried in the ground, without digging up tulipsThe holes in the bottom and sides allow the flowers to receive adequate nutrition. This method is also suitable if the soil in your garden is completely unsuitable: simply fill the basket with black soil, without filling the entire bed.
If tulips have already started growing, it is better to plant them as houseplants.
If you don't want to throw away diseased bulbs, you can carefully remove the problem areas with a sharp knife, coat the cuts with brilliant green, and plant them separately. Avoid planting diseased and healthy bulbs next to each other, as the infection will spread to both.

Advice!

Gardeners note that tulips are otherwise extremely undemanding and grow well even under less favorable conditions.

Bright, eye-catching tulips are considered one of the most important spring flowers for good reason. They're among the first to appear and decorate a bare garden bed for almost the entire spring. Another advantage is their low maintenance: planting the bulbs in the fall directly into open ground, you can get a beautiful flower bed in the spring.