Tulips - Ask Extension
I want to transplant some tulips. Can I dig them up and store the bulbs to be planted at a later date or do they have to be replanted immediately?
Knowledgebase
Tulips #870887
Asked May 31, 2024, 6:48 AM EDT
I want to transplant some tulips. Can I dig them up and store the bulbs to be planted at a later date or do they have to be replanted immediately?
Wayne County Michigan
Expert Response
Thank you, Teresa, for your question!
After blooming the tulip bulb accumulates and stores nutrients it needs for its next bloom cycle. This happens naturally and is completed when the foliage begins to yellow. This is the best time to dig up your bulbs. Allow for enough space so as not to dig too close damaging the bulb you are digging up. The bulbs may be replanted at this time OR you may store them to plant later in the season. Fill a wooden box (or other container) with wood shavings or peat moss and sandwich the bulbs within the filling. Another option is to store them in an old onion bag or netting - something that allows them to stay dry.
Leave it in a cool and dark place that’s not moist until you’re ready to replant them.
Plant anytime in September or after before the ground freezes with the bulb base approximately 6 inches from the soil surface. You may choose to add a teaspoon of 10-10-10 fertilizer to the hole (or trench) before bulb placement, mixing it into the bottom of your hole. This provides your newly planted bulbs a boost, however this is not a necessary step. Bulbs are planted 4-6 inches apart, firming the soil around the bulbs. Cover with soil.
For further reading click on the "Spring Care for Hardy Bulbs" in the below listed article.
Planting bulbs, tubers and rhizomes | UMN Extension
After blooming the tulip bulb accumulates and stores nutrients it needs for its next bloom cycle. This happens naturally and is completed when the foliage begins to yellow. This is the best time to dig up your bulbs. Allow for enough space so as not to dig too close damaging the bulb you are digging up. The bulbs may be replanted at this time OR you may store them to plant later in the season. Fill a wooden box (or other container) with wood shavings or peat moss and sandwich the bulbs within the filling. Another option is to store them in an old onion bag or netting - something that allows them to stay dry.
Leave it in a cool and dark place that’s not moist until you’re ready to replant them.
Plant anytime in September or after before the ground freezes with the bulb base approximately 6 inches from the soil surface. You may choose to add a teaspoon of 10-10-10 fertilizer to the hole (or trench) before bulb placement, mixing it into the bottom of your hole. This provides your newly planted bulbs a boost, however this is not a necessary step. Bulbs are planted 4-6 inches apart, firming the soil around the bulbs. Cover with soil.
For further reading click on the "Spring Care for Hardy Bulbs" in the below listed article.
Planting bulbs, tubers and rhizomes | UMN Extension
