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IN THIS GUIDE

TULIP GUIDES

purple and white flowering tulips growing in a container outside in front of a wall

Container GrowingDeadheadingVarieties

Tulips are beautiful bloom of former saltation and other summertime that can provide great interest to any garden .

We all love that tulip can seem lovely in a wide ambit of dissimilar gardens .

a hand holding a small brown tulip bulb over a work surface covered in bulbs ready for planting

However , you might be wondering if you could raise tulip in pot .

Are Tulips Suited To Containers?

tulip are , of course , normally develop in containers and can thrive in a container garden .

They are a expectant choice for those look to make beautiful flowering displays for the give and early summer .

There are a huge telephone number of different tulip varieties that you might choose from when create a container garden .

lots of white and brown shell tulip bulbs on a garden work surface ready to be planted out

Different varieties can be aggregate to create attractive container show , and tulips also lend themselves well to mixed container presentation alongside other springiness electric light .

When selecting tulips for container arise , it can be an advantage to take care for tulips that will blossom for several years without lifting .

However , it is significant to note that there are also certain specialist tulip types that are specifically suited to finish in free - draining precondition ina rock’n’roll or gravel garden .

a large brown pot being held up in front of a garden outside

There are also some that grow in partial shade in moisture - retentive soil and a few that are more tender and are rise in a greenhouse undercover .

So , when pick out tulips , ensure that you understand the indigence of the different tulip that you would like to rise .

When select tulip for a container garden , you will also call for to think not only about the shape and coloration of the tulips in interrogation but also when precisely they bloom .

a hand placing a pot containing tulip bulbs covered in compost in front of a pink flowering display and a brick wall outside

It will be important to know when particular tulip blossom in edict to find the right combination ofbulbs and other plantsto admit in your container display .

Even if you are grow tulip alone , you might wish to consider combine other - blossom , mid - time of year and belatedly - bloom tulip motley to extend the appeal of the display .

“ Another factor to consider is the acme the tulips grow to in relation to other bulbs in the container , ” shares Master Horticulturist Roy Nicol .

an unopened bag of all-purpose compost with an orange label next to an open bag

“ For case , ‘ Red Riding Hood ’ is a gnome form to 20 curium respectable at the edge of a container while ‘ White Triumphator ’ is a grandiloquent diversity to 90 centimetre best in a central position so as to not obscure other flowers . ”

Suitable Containers

When choosing a container for most tulips , it is important to choose one which is large enough to create an likeable display .

Like other spring bulbs , tulips tend to front unspoiled if they are planted in clumps or drifts with as many flowers as possible .

Of course , in a container , there will always be a limit to how many tulip you’re able to mature , but choose a magnanimous container at least 40 - 50 cm in deepness and width is usually the effective insurance policy .

a pot full of compost being used to scatter soil into a larger pot that is resting in a garden bed outside

A fairly sized container will allow you to produce an attractive display of tulips if you are grow these on their own .

However , it will also permit you to have more options when it come to combining tulip with other spring blossom medulla oblongata , or other bedding plant to create interesting and attractive container display that will look great over a longer period of clip .

When choosing your container , remember that you could consider reclaimed or reused items , and do n’t inevitably have to rush out and buy fresh peck or containers for your garden .

four tulip bulbs evenly placed in a container filled with soil

Whichever container you select , it is crucial to check that that excess water can drain freely from the yap or holes at the radix .

Most tulips , and most other vulgar outpouring bulb , require free - draining conditions as waterlogged grunge can be expected to cause the medulla to rot and fail to blossom .

Suitable Compost

Most tulip do not really require anything particularly special when it comes to the growing medium .

you may make use of any peat - destitute multipurpose compost or a homemade equivalent weight to fill your containers .

I utilize Biochar All - Purpose which is certified 100 % peat - free –

a trowel being used to scoop up compost in a small orange container

Just check that that whatever produce medium you choose , it is relatively free - draining and wo n’t cause bulbs to rot due to excessive urine keeping .

Typically I find that add together 1 part gritstone to 3 share of this growing sensitive will aid check that that drain is not an issue .

If you plan on hold tulips in pots for more than a single season , using a loam - based mixture such as compost with add John Innes or a homemade loam - based or soil - ground mix can be good .

a single brown tulip bulb that has been placed on the surface of soil in a container

Note that some specialiser tulips need even better drain and need additional steps to improve this , such as a layer of shrill sand below the electric-light bulb , and a bed of moxie topdressing in the top of the container .

Make certain you understand the needs of the particular type of tulips that you are grow .

Planting Your Tulip Bulbs

you may plant your tulip bulbs in pots any fourth dimension in autumn , but I ’d commend sow in tulip bulb in October or November , which is a little later than most other spring bulb .

tulip can be sown earlier but will be more susceptible to a disease called tulip fire .

However , if you are planting tulip bulbs in a mixed display alongside other leaping bulbs , you may wish to plant tulip bulbs earlier so that you’re able to plant them at the same clip as other bulb ina superimposed system called a bulb lasagne .

a bag of small allium bulbs placed next to larger tulip bulbs that are lying on a potting table

Whether you implant at the same time as other outflow bulbs or hold off for a while , make certain that you get your tulip planted before the first strong frost in your domain .

Of course , this will be later on in some parts of the UK and sooner in others .

Spacing can change reckon on a range of factors , admit the specific variety or variety of tulip that you have choose to grow .

large pots that are full of compost placed in front of red, purple and yellow flowering potted plants

As a general rule of thumb , tulip electric light should be plant at a astuteness of at least 2 - 3 metre the bulb ’s pinnacle , and at a spatial arrangement of at least twice the bulb ’s width .

ensure when plant that the pointy goal of the bulb faces upwards .

Naturally , how many tulips you could acquire in a particular container will depend on the size of it of the container you have selected .

potted tulip bulbs that have been covered in compost growing in containers in front of a wooden fence

It will also depend , of form , on whether you are growing tulips alone or combining them with other spring bulbs or plants .

However , as a universal normal , you may place between 12 - 20 bulb within a 40 - 50 atomic number 96 pot .

Of of course , you would boil down this figure if you are planting tulip alongside other plants or making a bulb lasagna that will also include other leaping electric-light bulb .

pink flowering tulips growing with blue muscari in large terracotta plant pots

If you are creating a bulb lasagne , then tulips will often form the lowest layer or grade within your pot , as the tardy flowering electric-light bulb .

Above these , in a center layer , you might plant some Narcissus pseudonarcissus bulbs , and some small earlier bulbs , like Muscari , might be point in a stratum above these .

You might also order dissimilar tiers with different variety of tulip , by plant the late flowering ones at the infrastructure , mid - season ones a little higher within the sight , and other unfolding case in the highest tier , making sure that there is still a coating of 2 - 3 times the bulb ’s height of grow medium above the bulbs positioned last .

Over the wintertime , you might also impart wintertime bedding on top , so that there is not just bare grunge to look at in your container over the coldest part of the year .

Ongoing Potted Tulip Care

When select where to position your tulip in containers , ensure that you take into account the needs of the exceptional variety that you have chosen to develop .

Most tulips , aside from those with particular requirements , will grow best in a sunny and relatively sheltered daub .

Make trusted that you water only sparingly over the wintertime month ( if at all ) , and put your container so that the bulb are not inundated with high levels of rainfall and that excess water can always drain away freely .

You may require to protect your bulbs from squirrels and other pests by covering them with a alloy mesh .

In springiness and through the anthesis time period especially , ensure you do water in teetotal atmospheric condition , but again , take care not to overwater and make certain excess can enfeeble away freely .

If you would like to bask tulips over multiple years , it can be a good idea to feed plants in pot every week with a atomic number 19 - deep constituent liquid plant provender .

Tulip potpourri that do n’t always re - flower all that reliably can be purloin once leaf die back , and can be stored in a dreary , well - ventilate place at 18 - 20 ° C until the largest bulb are replant in autumn .

This can make successful re - flowering more in all probability , though this is not guaranteed .

Expect your exhibit of tulip , if you are not just process them as single - season bedding plant , to flower well the first year only , with reduced flowering in the second twelvemonth .

“ If reliably perennial tulip are used , good anthesis can be expect to continue for several years , whilst other bulbs such as Narcissus can be expected to be reliably perennial , ” explains Roy .

In any showcase , after two geezerhood you will likely need to thin out the tulip bulbs to prevent overcrowding and repot the medulla oblongata in a young container display .