Am I Taking Good Care Of My Tulips?

Are your tulips planted somewhere where they can get at least 6-8 hours of sunlight a day?

Are your tulips planted in well-drained soil and fertile soil?

Are the bulbs spaced at least 4 to 6 inches apart?

Do you water your tulips every week?

Have you been applying compost or fertilizing your tulips annually?

Have you been keeping pests like slugs and snails or insects away from your tulips?

Have you been deadheading your tulips as soon as their flowers start to fade?

Your tulips aren't receiving optimal lighting. Tulips prefer a site with full or afternoon sun. In Hardiness Zones 7 and 8, choose a shady site or one with morning sun only, as tulips don’t like a lot of heat.

Your tulips aren't planted in an adequate type of soil. The soil must be well-draining, neutral to slightly acidic, fertile, and dry or sandy. All tulips dislike areas with excessive moisture.

Spacing between your tulips is not optimal. You’ll want to space bulbs 4 to 6 inches apart, so choose a large enough planting site.

Rainy summers, irrigation systems, and wet soil are death to tulips. Never deliberately water a bulb bed unless in a drought. Wet soil leads to fungus and disease and can rot bulbs.

Your tulips aren't receiving enough nutrients. Tulips love nutrient-rich soil. Apply compost annually to provide nutrients needed for future blooms. In the spring, when leaves emerge, feed your tulip the same bulb food or bone meal which you used at planting time.

Many pests feed on tulips. You should do everything you can to keep them away from your plants.

If you wish to have healthy tulips with beautiful flowers in the following year, you should prune off fading blooms. Allow the leaves to remain on the plants for about 6 weeks after flowering. The tulips need their foliage to gather energy for next year’s blooms.

Good job! You are taking good care of your tulips.