How to keep bulbs of tulips until the spring at home

Tulips are usually planted in the soil in late autumn, but it happens that for some reasonthis could not be done. In this case, it is necessary to decide where and how to keep the bulbs of tulips until the spring, so as not to leave the garden without these beautiful flowers. To save the planting material, and so that the bulbs threw out the flower arrows - it's not a simple matter, having a number of subtleties. But if you observe these features - not very troublesome.

Features of growing tulips

To admire the luxurious colors of tulips every year, after flowering bulbs you need to dig out, sort and etch every year( or at least a year later).Otherwise, they eventually become infected with various diseases, pests are planted in the beds, and the plants are weakened and may die. In addition, replacing bulbs have the property to bury every year deeper into the earth and, in a few years, to extract them becomes problematic. It is noticed that if one grows tulips in the same garden for several years without digging, then their varietal properties are lost in time.

Therefore, in order to preserve these beautiful flowers in the garden, in the end of June and the beginning of July( when the leaves begin to fade), the mature bulbs should be scooped out, sorted by size and stored for storage until autumn. They are planted usually late in the autumn before the onset of persistent colds. Approximately three or four months, the planting material must be stored correctly at home.

Tulips in the winter feel great on the beds. In case there is not enough snow, it is better to cover the planting with a botanical, branch or straw.

How to properly store the planting material of the tulips

It happens that in the late autumn you can not plant flowers in the ground - there is no way to get into the garden because of heavy rains, snow suddenly fell or frosts. In this case, it is necessary to decide where and how to store bulbs of tulips in winter. The main task is to create such conditions that in the spring on most of the plants full-blown flowers blossom.

Where to store bulbs of tulips

Bulbs of tulips, which are supposed to be planted in a permanent place in autumn, stored at room temperature( optimal + 23 - +25 degrees).They are poured into prepared containers( suitable for ordinary cardboard boxes) with a layer of 3-5 cm, and stored in any shaded place.

If the planting material remains in storage until spring, then starting from August, it is necessary to gradually lower the temperature to + 15 ° C, which is optimal.

Some gardeners suggest placing bulbs of tulips on the bottom shelves of the refrigerator. They will be able to be preserved intact, but after planting, only some varieties will bloom in the soil, the bulk will be limited only to green leaves.

If the house has a dry cellar, then it is almost an ideal place for storing planting material. In autumn the temperature will gradually decrease. In winter it is cool there, but the temperature does not usually drop below +10 degrees.

Can be stored in a cool pantry or on a heated balcony.

Some gardeners successfully use cellars and cellars for these purposes.

How to properly prepare the planting stock for storage

To keep the bulbs until the spring, they need to be properly prepared and laid for the winter.

• After the bulbs have been excavated, they must be sorted according to grades and size( parsing) and disposed in a separate container. Particular attention should be paid to large bulbs( 1 and 2 parsing), it is from them that we should expect full-blown flowers in the spring.
• The dressing material should be cleaned from the ground. If the bulbs are not intended for distillation, then it is useful to wash and disinfect them, for which it is allowed to stand for 30-40 minutes in a pink solution of potassium permanganate. This significantly improves the safety of tulips. If damaged and diseased bulbs are found, they should be discarded immediately.
• Cleaned, washed and disinfected bulbs should be dried to dry in a shaded place. Drying in a ventilated room is preferable, compared to the street, as this will protect against unforeseen precipitation. In addition, tulips "do not like" drafts.
• After a week, well-dried planting material must be re-sorted, remove the remains of stems, covering scales and embryonic small bulbs. If non-standard, damaged and diseased bulbs are found, they should be discarded.
• Leave the tulips to dry for a few more days.

This completes the preparation, you can place the bulbs for storage until spring.

Methods of storage of bulbs of tulips

If the planting material is large, then for winter storage usually only large enough bulbs are left. The largest, more than 3-4 cm in size, will blossom fully, smaller ones will give small flowers or blossom in a year. Children, whose diameter is less than 1 cm, are usually disposed of. This is done not only because they are difficult to save until the spring. Such small bulbs can bloom only after growing for two to three seasons.

Prepared bulbs should be spread in one or two layers in a prepared container. It can be boxes or baskets. It is desirable that the container has a mesh bottom or walls to ensure good ventilation. Some growers store the planting material, suspending it in small batches in tissue bags or old kapron tights.

Cardboard boxes for these purposes are not recommended, because, firstly, they are difficult to provide the necessary air circulation, and secondly - they quickly damp and become a source of fungi and bacteria.

• The ideal storage location is a special ventilated thermal chamber where the temperature is maintained automatically during the entire storage period. But such devices are quite expensive for home use.
• You can save most of the planting material in a regular apartment. It is necessary to choose a dry, cool, shaded place away from heating appliances and drafts.
• For better preservation, you can pour the bulbs with dry sawdust or wrap each of them in newsprint. This significantly reduces the possibility of contamination of planting material from decaying or sick specimens.
• If there is a dry cellar or a cellar, you can store the tulips there. To do this, the crumbled light earth needs to be buried in the crates( forest soil or peat mixed with vermiculite is suitable), followed by the landing of prepared bulbs. In winter they will take root, but they will not grow because of the low temperature. When stacking the planting material for storage, it is necessary to protect it from rodents. Mice and rats are very fond of eating bulbs.

During storage, the planting material should be periodically inspected and mercilessly removed spoiled specimens. This allows you to reduce the loss of bulbs at times.

The need to preserve the planting material of tulips can arise in almost any flower lover. With a little effort and observing simple rules, it is possible to store the bulbs until the spring at home. The efforts will pay off with a rich harvest of beautiful flowers.