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Tulips Daffodils Bulb Care
Flowering bulbs like daffodils, tulips, hyacinths and crocus are
some of the earliest flowers to appear in gardens each year, some starting
to bloom as early as January. Many will bloom and multiply for years with
minimal care, while others are best planted for one season’s show of color
in our hot climate. Bulbs can be planted in flower beds, in lawns, around
trees, or grown in pots or window boxes.
The term "bulb" is commonly used to refer to true bulbs and other
bulb-like structures such as corms, tubers, tuberous roots and stems, and
rhizomes. Bulb-like structures store food to ensure the plant’s survival
during unfavorably cold or droughty weather.
Most bulbs require a 12- to 16- week chilling period to produce flowers.
Coastal gardeners can ensure spring blooms by refrigerating bulbs in
ventilated packages until planting. Avoid storing fruit near the bulbs,
since fruit-produced ethylene gas can prevent blooming. When bulbs do not
receive enough chilling, they bloom close to the ground, on very short
stems. Some bulb suppliers sell bulbs that have already been given a
chilling treatment.
 Tulips
are well known and loved for their vibrant colors that make such
eye-catching displays in raised beds and tubs. They are also popular as pot
plants, on windowsills and table settings.
Tulips can usually only be counted on for a single
season of color.They are treated like annual flowers, dug
and discarded after they have bloomed in the spring. To ensure
spring-flowering refrigerate bulbs
from the time of purchase until planting in November to late December. Plant
tulip bulbs 6 to 8 inches deep and 4 to 6 inches apart.
Hybrid tulips are divided into a number
of groups based on form and bloom time. The best for South Carolina gardens
include:
Single Late Tulips: These tulips are
one of the best groups for growing in warm climates. They have long-strong
stems with deep, cup-shaped blooms in a wide range of colors. They grow
between 14 and 30 inches tall. This group includes tulips formerly
classified as Darwins and cottage tulips. Recommended cultivars include
‘Halcro’ (vibrant red); ‘Queen of Night’ (deep dark maroon); ‘Renown’
(rose-pink); ‘Menton’ (apricot-pink with inside of poppy red); ‘Maureen’
(pure white); ‘Makeup’ (ivory white with red edge); ‘Temple of Beauty’
salmon-rose); and ‘Hocus Pocus’ (yellow-tipped pink).
Darwin Hybrid: These tall tulips have the largest
blooms of all tulips on strong stems in mid-spring. Good varieties for South
Carolina include: ‘Apeldoorn’ (red); ‘Golden Apeldoorn’ (yellow); ‘Olympic
Flame’ (red streaked with yellow); ‘Parade’ (dark red with black base edged
yellow); ‘Pink Impression’; and ‘Daydream’ (orange and yellow).
Lily-Flowered: These tulips have pointed blooms
with arched petals on strong stems in mid-season. Excellent varieties
include ‘West Point’ (yellow), ‘White Triumphator’ (white); ‘Red Shine’
(red); ‘Mona Lisa’ (red and white); and ‘Marilyn’ (white streaked
rosy-pink).
Jonquil Daffodils: Many people call almost any small yellow
daffodil a jonquil. However, jonquils are a particular class of daffodils
descended from the species Narcissus jonquilla. This group of
daffodils typically has small, yellow flowers held in clusters of two to six
sweetly fragrant blooms per stem and slender rush-like leaves. Excellent
jonquil cultivars include the following:
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