If you want beautiful tulips and daffodils in your yard this spring, now’s the time to plant the bulbs, said Tim Holcomb, owner of Holcomb Garden Center in Chattanooga.
“You want them in the ground by early December,” he said. “Bloom time will be in midspring.”
While most varieties of daffodils are yellow, the colors of tulips are endless, Mr. Holcomb said.
“The most popular tulip color is red,” he said. “We carry the basic colors, but they are available in every shade of the rainbow.”
FIVE TIPS
1 Select healthy bulbs. “The rule of thumb is that the bigger the bulb, the bigger the bloom,” Mr. Holcomb said. Make sure bulbs are free of bruises or soft spots.
2 Prep the soil with peat moss or compost before planting. Each bulb should be planted 4 to 6 inches deep in full sun. Plant the bulbs pointed side up, root side down. “Protech has a bulb planter drill bit ($20) that attaches to a drill. It’s especially good for ground that has never been broken.”
3 Do not break apart the bulbs. “You may get two stalks and two blooms from one bulb.”
4 Know the plants’ growing habits. While tulips are typically perennials, locally they tend to be a “one-shot deal,” Mr. Holcomb said, explaining that because of local climate, tulips need to be planted every year. “Plant tulips in an area where they will drain well. It looks good to plant pansies in the same area. Because tulips only last several weeks, when they die, the area will still be covered with pansies. It looks good. Daffodils grow well in the Chattanooga area, he said, noting they are perennials that multiply.
5 Resort to Plan B if you procrastinate. If you don’t get bulbs in the ground by early December, you can force the bulbs by planting them in a pot and growing inside, Mr. Holcomb said. “Once you’ve planted the bulbs in a pot, place the pot in the refrigerator for six to 10 weeks to let the root grow. Bring out when it’s time to plant. Be sure there’s no citrus in the refrigerator. Citrus sets off a gas that will kill the bulb.”
Feature writer Karen Nazor Hill covers fashion, design, home and gardening, pets, entertainment, human interest features and more. She also is an occasional news reporter and the Town Talk columnist. She previously worked for the Catholic newspaper Tennessee Register and was a reporter at the Chattanooga Free Press from 1985 to 1999, when the newspaper merged with the Chattanooga Times. She won a Society of Professional Journalists Golden Press third-place award in feature writing for ...
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