Tulip Growing in Southern Areas
The secret of success with Tulip Growing in Southern Areas is Deep planting
Tulip growing in the upper South although universally practiced, is not an unmixed blessing. From Oklahoma to a short distance below Dallas, tulips flower well the first season after planting but if they bloom at all the next season they give second rate flowers.
To understand this behavior of tulips one must understand- their reproductive habits. A tulip bulb on becoming blooming size, makes bulbs and offsets, then dies. If it has been stimulated into extraordinary fertility by hot soil it makes three small bulbs and many offsets. Bulbs produced from the hot soil area (the six-inch depth recommended by northern garden authorities) will all be inferior in size and flowering potential to the parent. By the third spring your bulb bed will be full of one-leaf, nonflowering plants.
If bulbs are planted one foot deep they will each make only one large size bulb and three offsets. The large size bulb made will give a flower and stem as large as that of the parent bulb. It will take three years for the offset to attain flowering size.
Where Soil Is Right
Holland bulb authorities recommend deep planting of tulips for the South to keep the soil temperature at bulb depth between 65 and 70 degrees. In the deep South it is necessary for commercial growers to refrigerate bulbs, storing them at a temperature of 45 degrees until planting time, if any bloom is to be had. Refrigerated bulbs can be planted as late as early February in any part of the South.
Planting tulip bulbs 12 inches deep is recommended only where practicable. It is self evident that bulbs might not be able to come up through a black gumbo soil. However where good tulip growing soil exists and drainage is excellent, deep planted tulips should be able to come up through light soil without difficulty.
Tulips are not particular about soil. They succeed best in soil with a pH range of 6.0 to 7.0 which is average garden soil. As tulips like humus in the soil this physical need can be met by incorporating moist peat moss in the soil to a depth of one foot, one third by volume. Although some commercial dealers do mulch tulips during winter with manure, it seems an unwise practice as Botrytis disease lurks in manure.
Another thing for gardeners to understand about tulip culture is that bulbs lose their roots and are entirely dormant six weeks after flowering. During the summer, although the soil should be cool so as not to dry up the bud, excessive watering would rot the bulb.
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Time of Planting
Bulbs are usually planted in this area (Oklahoma) during November as they will not make roots before that time. If for some reason you cannot plant bulbs at the proper planting time you can buy bulbs from bulb companies who furnish pre-chilled bulbs for deep South planting and plant bulbs as late as early February. The chilling not only gives the bulb the cold period it needs but also prevents sprouting.
In 1998 I made a test planting of 1,400 chilled tulip bulbs as late as February 3, and nearly every bulb flowered and gave good bloom for five years. An unprecedented May rainfall of 18 inches during May made the tulips very unhappy. However five years of good tulip performance is enough for any gardener to want.
by L Quinlan
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