Why Not “tiptoe through your own tulips”

Its important when buying bedding tulip bulbs to ensure they are large enough to flower (species tulips can be smaller).Many suppliers will mark packs with words such as “grade 1″ or “top size”, this is good sign that you are buying vigorous flowering bulbs.Choose carefully make sure each bulb is plump and blemish free with a clean outter skin.

The best time of year to plant your tulip bulbs is late October or November, this will help deter the disfiguring disease “Tulip Fire”, by forcing the leaves of the tulip to emerge in late spring.When weather conditions are more stable and less likely to encourage fungal infection.

The ideal depth to plant tulips is three times their size, but this depends on the type of soil your planting them into. For heavy poor draining soil plant shallowly to deter rotting, conversely if the soil is really light plant slightly deeper to make sure the bulbs get adequate moisture.

Use a potting mixture of 30% grit, 30% John Innes No3 and 40% multi purpose compost for your bedding tulips, or if you are going to replace with new bulbs each year multi purpose compost on its own is fine.If you are going to plant your tulips in containers then use a mixture of 50% John Innes No3 and 50% horticultural grit this will allow species tulips to flower year after year.

Once your displays have died down in July lift each bulb, dust the surface with green or yellow sulphur and put on a rack in a sunny spot until autumn.

Look at a wide range of Fall bulls and Tulips from MyGardenCenterOnline