Flower Week – Tulip Edge: Celebrate the Beauty and Elegance of Tulips

Hotel NH Noordwijk Conference Centre Leeuwenhorst is situated at the edge of the town of Noordwijk and Noordwijkerhout just across the flower fields (in season). Keukenhof is a 15 min drive by car or an 10,5 km bike ride away.

Begin by partially filling the container with potting soil. Then place the tulip bulbs on the soil surface. Adjust the soil level until the tops of the bulbs are slightly below the rim of the container. The number of bulbs to plant per pot depends on the size of the container. Generally, four to five bulbs are placed in a 5-inch-diameter pot, six to seven bulbs in a 6-inch-diameter pot. When placing tulip bulbs in the container, position the bulb so the flat side of the bulb faces the wall of the pot. When positioned in this way, the large lower leaf of each bulb will grow outward over the edge of the container forming an attractive border around the edge of the pot. Once properly positioned, place additional potting soil around the bulbs. However, do not completely cover the bulbs. Allow the bulb tops (noses) to stick above the potting soil. For ease of watering, the level of the soil mix should be to 1 inch below the rim of the container. Label each container as it is planted. Include the name of the cultivar and the planting date. After potting, water each container thoroughly.

Flower Week – Tulip Edge

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In order to bloom, tulips and other spring-flowering bulbs must be exposed to temperatures of 40 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 to 16 weeks. Possible storage sites include the refrigerator, root cellar or a trench in the ground. When using the refrigerator for cold storage, place the potted bulbs in a plastic bag if the refrigerator contains apples or other ripening fruit. Ripening fruit give off ethylene gas that may impair flower development. During cold storage, water the bulbs regularly and keep them in complete darkness.

Begin to remove the potted tulip bulbs from cold storage once the cold requirement has been met. At this time, yellow shoots should have begun to emerge from the bulbs. Place the tulips in a cool (50 to 60 degree Fahrenheit) location that receives low to medium light. Leave them in this area until the shoots turn green, usually in four or five days. Then move them to a brightly lit, 60 to 70 degree Fahrenheit location. Keep the plants well-watered. Turn the containers regularly to promote straight, upright growth. On average, flowering should occur three to four weeks after the bulbs have been removed from cold storage. For a succession of bloom indoors, remove pots from cold storage every two weeks.

While the most popular colors are red and white, flowers may also be pink, salmon, apricot, rose or deep burgundy. Some varieties are bicolor such as purple and green, or picotee (having petals with a different edge color).

Tulips grow from a teardrop-shaped root structure, called a bulb. Tulips are perennials in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 8, which means they will bloom again each year if cared for properly in these zones. They tend to bloom much better the first year than subsequent years -- the bulbs are susceptible to rot and are a favorite treat for field mice and other animals. For that reason, many prefer to grow tulips as annual flowers. If you live in USDA zone 9 and above, you may wish to grow tulips as annuals.

Tulip bulbs house the nutrients for next year's leaves and flowers. As the tulip grows, is absorbs the nutrients from the bulb. As the leaves die back, they return nutrients -- primarily carbohydrates -- to the bulb. This process is called senesce, and it allows the plant to bloom again next spring. It usually takes about six weeks for the leaves to die back completely. As they die, they turn yellow, and then brown. By the end of the process, they will be brown and dry, and will detach easily from the bulb with only gentle tugging.

Some people braid the leaves together and then press them down onto the soil to neaten up the appearance of the tulip bed. This is not recommended, as the leaves still need plenty of sun -- even as they are dying -- to produce the food that will replenish the bulb, advises University of California Marin Master Gardeners. A better option is to hide the browning foliage by planting flowering annuals or other perennials in front of or in between the tulips.

If you live in USDA zone 9 or above, you should not leave the bulbs in the ground after the blooms and leaves have faded. Once the leaves have died back and you have removed them, dig up the bulbs and store them in a cool, dry place. Because tulip bulbs require a chilling period before planting, move them from the cool, dry place into the refrigerator about four to six weeks before you plant them in fall. Plant them immediately after you remove them from the fridge.

Tulips are one of the most popular flowers in the world. Their beautiful colors and ease of care make these early bloomers a favorite of gardeners everywhere. In this article, certified master gardener Liz Jaros explains everything you need to know about growing tulips this season and their care.

Tulips are relatively easy to grow and care for if you prep the ground properly, get your timing right, and follow some basic planting rules. These popular flowering perennials are not particularly vulnerable to pests or disease, and many tulip varieties will return faithfully year after year.

Extra large, cup-like flowers in shades of orange, red, pink and yellow tulip blooms in mid season on strong stems up to 30 inches tall. Tulips in this category last for years longer than many of their peers.

The petals on this type are long and pointed, arching outward like a lily. This type of tulip is grown in shades of red, white, pink, and purple. Some cultivars have bi-color edges. Lily flowered tulips can reach heights of up to three feet and bloom mid to late season.

Easily identifiable with their feathered, curled, or twisted petals in single or multiple colors, parrot tulips have stems of variable length and flower late season. They are fragile and need some protection from harsh elements.

Plan to plant when temperatures are consistently below 60 degrees, about 6-8 weeks before a hard freeze is expected in your region. This will give them enough time to grow some roots before entering dormancy but not enough to stimulate premature shoot growth. You can plant them later if you plant to grow tulips in pots.

In spring, after they have finished blooming and their petals are spent, cut just their flower stems down to the base. Leave foliage in place until it has turned completely yellow or brown. Your tulips will use this period of time to nourish their bulbs and prepare for next year.

Again, propagating from seed requires great patience as there will be no flowers for at least five seasons. And there is no guarantee that new flowers will be genetically identical to the mother tulip. Some varieties are sterile and will not sprout at all.

This double late tulip has peony-like flowers that bloom in late spring on 1-2 foot stems. This is a pink tulip variety with petals that have a bit of white, and yellow whorls. Foliage is striking and variegated with white edges and dark green centers.

These pests are found mainly below ground and will attack the tulip bulb itself, rather than its stems and flowers. They are small and pear-shaped, with a coloring that is clear to white. Overwatered bulbs are the most vulnerable to these pests, so take care to water evenly.

Care After Blooming AFTER BLOOMING REMOVE THE SEEDPOD, the top part. Jim likes to cut the stem down to just above the 1st leaf. That way you have a nice hosta looking plant. It makes for a clean looking flower bed and it will look nicer for the 8 weeks it takes for their leaves to turn brown. It's important to leave the foliage intact because the energy of the plant goes straight down from the leaves into the bulb, making it grow bigger. The bulb can more than double its size in those 8 weeks. So, don't remove the foliage until the leaves are completely brown. Jim has a tip. Once a week, through this period, give it a light shot of liquid fertilizer, this will make a big difference.

Yonkers Gardens Joe next visits with Jim Yonker of Yonkers Gardens. WE FIRST LOOK AT A SPECIE TULIP. It is smaller than its bigger relatives but they bloom earlier. The best part is they're hardy and come back year after year. They naturalize or perennialize, they seed themselves, they multiply. Every year the clump gets bigger and showier and the seedlings scatter, starting new plants. Those new plants don't produce flowers the next year, in fact it takes 3 or 4 years, but it is worth the wait. As with other tulips you need for the foliage to fade but Jim has several ideas to hide that unsightly foliage. The following plants are great for filling in empty spaces. Jim likes the Geranium. This is a Pandora geranium. His customers have nicknamed it a tulip geranium because each flower looks like a miniature tulip. Dahlias are another great choice. Not only are there many colors, but you also have different sizes and shapes available.

Jim Veldheer of Veldheer's Tulip Gardens welcomes us. This is a spectacular time of year, the tulips are at their peak the last week of April, the first week of May. His is a family business, Jim's father started it in 1945 with 100 red tulips and 300 white tulips. Today the bed of French Delegants contains over 4,000 bulbs alone. Each year over 12 million bulbs come through their doors, over 600 different types of tulips. They focus on quality because quality is a big aspect in the bulb industry today. What they do today, the way the bulb is treated 3 years before you touch the bulb, will make a big difference as to how that flower will look in your yard.

WE NEXT LOOK AT SOME OF THE TEST BEDS. The first is a miniature trial bed. Here there are each of the 13 different families represented. We go past the Darwins, 22 inches tall, beautiful late bloomers, great for cut flowers. Then Lily Tulips, 18 inches tall, mid season, pointed petals, absolutely gorgeous. Multi Florals, 5 to 7 blossoms per stalk. Temple Sisters, 32 inches tall, great big cups on the top. Triumphs, the biggest family of color, 18 inches tall, mid season, a little variation. Fosterianas, early blooming, 18 to 20 inches tall. Highball Glasses, the short Greigii and Kaufmannianas, the 1st color of spring. Peony Tulips, a little flatter, 18 inches, early to late, very full centers. Darwin hybrids, 20 inches tall, early to mid season bloomers, excellent stalks for cut flowers, most are somewhat fragrant. Look at the edge of the Orchid Fringes each petal looks individual, unique. The Parrot Tulips with heavy cuts to the petal, are late bloomers, 20 inches tall, a white and pink edge on the tulip, even post bloom the variegated margin on the leaves creates interest for a long time. They're all fantastic, beautiful and exciting. 2ff7e9595c