Tulips need good soil, food

Q. I noticed in Marilyn’s article that she has challenges with tulips, as do many of us. What varieties do you recommend? What can we do to have pretty ones?

Stacy from Canfield

A. Tulips are quite beautiful and a wonderful welcome to spring. But these spectacular flowers can be finicky. Many of us plant them one year, simply to lose half or more of the blooms the next year with most bulbs not living past the third year. If they do survive past the third, you see foliage, but no bloom.

The most common problem with tulip survival is soil condition issues. Tulips require loose soil, good drainage and proper nutrition. Many of us have clay soils in our gardens. Clay soil tends to hold water, making tulip bulbs susceptible to many diseases. I’ve known some gardeners who used equal parts compost, sand and top soil to make a raised bed for tulips and other finicky perennials. The results have been wonderful.

When it comes to fertility, tulip bulbs are heavy feeders. Our OSU factsheet recommends two pounds per 100 square feet of a 5-10-10 or 6-12-12 fertilizer. Do this when the foliage emerges and again after the bloom fades.

Another reason is many gardeners want to tidy up the garden after the tulip blooms fade. Thus, they cut the foliage back early, starving the bulbs. Leave the foliage be. If you like a well-manicured garden, try planting tulips among your perennial plants. These plants will grow up around the tulips by the time the blooms are fading and keep the area from looking unsightly until the tulip foliage fades away naturally.

Furthermore, the longevity has been bred out of tulips (in general). Breeders have chosen colors and showy features over hardiness. This is why many tulip displays are planted in the fall, then dug and discarded after the spring bloom. Thus, you have to be picky when choosing new bulbs if you want tulips for the long haul. Some varieties do better as perennials than others.

Iowa State says Darwin hybrid tulips, Fosteriana tulips and species tulips are generally the longest lived.

Eric Barrett is OSU Extension educator for agriculture and natural resources in Mahoning County. Call the office hotline at 330-533-5538 to submit your questions. Clinic hours are Mondays and Thursday from 9a.m. to noon through October.