What is the best way to preserve tulip bulbs until spring. Is it possible to grow tulips at home in winter?

Tulips, like most spring flowers, bulbous plants, the biological calendar is special - the growing season is short (3–4 months), the rest of the time the bulb ripens and the potential for next year. Digging and a period of summer dormancy for them is an obligatory element of agricultural technology and a guarantee of maintaining varietal characteristics. Hence the numerous questions about where and how to store tulip bulbs so as not to spoil them and get abundant flowering in the spring?

A blooming tulip field is a gardener's dream

5 reasons why tulips need to be dug up

Digging up a tulip bulb after ripening is a biological need. What happens to the plant if this is not done?

The faded bulb dies, but at the same time gives life to a whole “family” of its own kind - a replacement bulb and children. In a year, the division process will repeat in geometric progression. There will be less and less space and nutrition for normal growth and vegetative regeneration, and the tulips will begin to shrink and degenerate.
The lack of heat and excess moisture are more acutely felt in the soil, especially if the summer is cold and rainy. This can prevent the formation of full-fledged replacement organs and peduncles.
If tulips are not dug up, the risk of infection with fungal diseases and damage by pests, for example, the larva of the cockchafer, increases.
Over time, unplanted bulbs go deeper. From there it is more difficult for a seedling to break through in the spring; there is not enough heat to form a flower bud.
Annual digging and storage of tulip bulbs until autumn planting- This reliable way quickly propagate valuable varieties.

Features of summer storage

Within a month after flowering, the bulb ripens. At this time there is an intense outflow nutrients from the stem and leaves, they gradually turn yellow and wither. The bulb itself becomes yellowish-brown. When ⅔ of the leaves wither and the stem becomes soft and pliable, the tulips can be removed. IN middle lane Russia – this is the second half of June.

Seed preparation

The dug out “bulb nests” along with the roots, covering scales and soil residues are placed in baskets or boxes (perforated) and left for a week to dry in a warm, dry and ventilated place. At home, a shed, shed, or veranda are suitable. Avoid direct exposure to the sun - this can cause burns to the delicate scales.

"Family" of tulips after digging

Next comes disassembling the bulbs. They are cleaned of integumentary scales and old roots, rotten, damaged specimens are rejected, and calibrated by size. If the defects are minor (mold deposits, superficial ulcers), they are removed mechanically - washed off, scraped off with a knife. To protect planting material from further infection, it is pickled in a manganese solution and dried.

Storage conditions

How to store tulip bulbs until autumn so that they do not rot, dry out, or germinate prematurely? The disassembled planting material is laid out in containers in 1–2 layers. During July-August the bulbs will undergo complex processes laying the organs of the future plant (leaves, flowers), and for this it is necessary to provide conditions.

Main - temperature regime! For the first three weeks - 25–30⁰ C, all subsequent time before planting - no higher than 20⁰ C.
The correct humidity is 60–70%. Excess moisture can lead to putrefactive infections or untimely germination, while too little can lead to drying out of the fleshy scales. If you notice that the bulbs have shriveled, use a spray bottle to humidify the air or place an open container of water nearby.
The third condition is air access. Never store bulbs in plastic bags– they simply won’t live to see the landing!

Sorted bulbs prepared for storage

Certificate proper storage– a clean, dry, elastic bulb, without signs of bottom germination at the time of planting (mid-September).

Note! If there is a risk of damage to the bulbs by rodents, it is better to store them in a hanging state. Vegetable nets, old tights, and stockings are suitable for this purpose.

Ways to preserve bulbs until spring

If you purchased tulip planting material in the fall and do not have time to plant it, there are several options for saving it until spring. Fundamental condition– the bulb must undergo mandatory stratification (cooling at a positive temperature close to 0⁰ C), otherwise the tulip will not bloom in the spring.

Dry storage

If there are few tulips, they can be put in the refrigerator - in a container with vegetables and fruits. First, wrap each onion in a separate sheet of paper and place it in a bag made of breathable material (fabric, paper).

In a private house appropriate place with a low but positive temperature - basement. To bring the conditions as close as possible to natural ones, sprinkle the bulbs with a dry substrate - sand, sawdust, vermiculite, etc. For plants planted in the spring, the growing season will shift slightly, they will bloom later, but the bulb will have time to ripen by autumn planting.

Wet germination

A good option is wet storage of tulip bulbs. Place a layer of slightly moistened sawdust or high peat into a plastic box with holes. Lay the bulbs bottom down and cover with moist substrate on top. In this form, the boxes are sent to the basement. During the storage period, roots and sprouts are formed, and the planted tulip will bloom in its usual time.

Early forcing as a storage method

If you have doubts that the planting material will last until spring, you can try early forcing followed by growing in open ground. This is not even a storage method, but an opportunity to preserve and propagate this or that flower variety.

Large bulbs should be planted in flower pots with regular garden soil so that the tip smooths out of the ground. Before frost, they can be left on the balcony or veranda, then wrapped in polyethylene along with the container and lowered into the basement. The duration of “winter dormancy” is quite long – 3–3.5 months. During this period, they need to be ventilated once every 2–3 weeks, and if the soil is dry, moisturize them. After germination, the plant is exposed to light.

Early germination at home

After the forcing has finished flowering, allow the bulbs to ripen. Containers with them are taken outside or, with a clod of earth, transplanted into open ground.

Video about winter storage of tulips:

Tulip flowers for sale or for design purposes can be grown in winter at home. The beginning of budding depends on the time of planting, place of maintenance and care. Before you grow tulips in a pot at home, you need to choose suitable variety, method of cultivation, prepare seed and a good container for the plant.

Varieties for growing in winter

For planting in a pot in winter time fit early varieties tulips:

tulip Foster, Kaufman;
Cooler Cardinal, Candy Prince;
terry varieties Abba, Monte Carlo, Terry red, Ice cream.

The listed species are less dormant and have good decorative properties. Experienced flower growers They leave only good reviews about the varieties.

Preparation of planting material

Tulips can be grown from seeds or bulbs. For beginners, it is better to use bulbs. Planting material must be purchased from trusted sellers so as not to receive seedlings of the wrong variety or poor quality.

If you plan to plant tulips from your personal garden, seed samples should be prepared in the spring and stored until the date in a dry, dark room at a temperature not lower than 20–25 °C.

Before planting, the bulbs need preparation:

Excavation. If you plan to plant plants from your garden.
Clearing soil and long roots.
Selection of large and medium bulbs. They take root well, grow and bloom faster.
Drying. Dry the bulbs in a well-ventilated, darkened area for 7–10 days.
Disinfection. The bulbs are soaked in a pink solution of potassium permanganate, kept for 30–40 minutes, then dried for several days.

To store bulbs until autumn, it is better to organize them in the cellar. You can fold them into a nylon stocking and hang them from the ceiling. In apartment conditions, the bulbs are stored in wooden boxes, under furniture or in a closet.

Immediately before planting, they are cleaned of scales and disinfected again.

The right pot

When growing flowers, it is important to choose the right container. It is necessary to grow tulips at home in a ceramic pot with drainage holes in the bottom. The container should be wide and low.

Ceramic containers are more expensive, but have advantages over plastic ones. Ceramics allow air to pass through well, do not overheat, and do not release harmful substances into the soil.

The soil

Tulips require light and neutral soil that allows air to pass through and moderately retains moisture. You can buy the soil mixture at the store or make it yourself.

A store-bought mixture of vermiculite and perlite is ideal for plants. You can mix garden soil with river sand in a 1:1 ratio. In the Netherlands, on some farms, tulips are grown only in sand.

In apartment conditions, tulips can be grown in hydrogel. It is sold in the form of film or balls. And also some gardeners grow tulips simply in water, without soil.

Planting methods

Planting of material into the soil is usually carried out in the fall, in September.

In the soil

The following instructions will help you cope with the procedure:

pour into container soil mixture at 2/3 height;
make shallow holes at intervals of 2–3 cm from each other;
deepen the samples into the holes with their sharp ends upward using pressing movements, starting from the edges and moving towards the middle;
cover the planted samples with substrate to a depth of 15–20 cm;
water the soil generously clean water temperature 20–25 °C.

You can plant the material in 2 layers. With this option, the plants will require more careful care.

The timing of planting depends on the desired flowering date. Bulbs are planted from August to November.

In hydrogel

You can plant tulip bulbs in hydrogel. This method has the following advantages:

there is no evaporation of moisture (plants do not require watering);
nutrients are preserved;
there is no risk of harming the tulip root system;
high decorative properties (gels of any color are sold);
You can grow flowers in transparent containers of any shape.

Hydrogel is well suited for design purposes. Growing tulips for sale in it is inconvenient and unprofitable.

Planting bulbs in hydrogel is easy. The balls are placed in a container, filled with water (for 1 kg of gel you need 300–350 ml of water), and the bulbs are deepened into their thickness.

In water

Tulips are grown in water for decorative purposes. Transparent tall or round vases are usually used for flowers.

Basic rules for planting and caring for flowers:

soak the bulbs in Epin for 2.5 hours to stimulate growth;
pour pebbles onto the bottom of the selected container;
Place the bulbs with the sharp end up, sprinkle small pebbles on all sides (the tops should rise above the surface);
pour a small amount of settled water into the container so that it reaches the roots of the onion and does not flood it;
put the container in a dark place;
when the roots increase in size, add water;
When sprouting greens, place the container in a warm and bright place, constantly adjust the liquid level;
Keep blooming tulips at a temperature of 12 °C.

It is important to control the water level. With a small amount of liquid, the bulbs will dry out and disappear. If there is too much water, the plant will rot.

Care measures

After planting the bulbs, the pot is transferred to a cool (7–10 ° C) and humid (75%) room. A balcony or cellar works well. If there are rodents in the cellar, the top of the pot should be covered with layers of mesh.

When the first shoots appear above the ground, the temperature is reduced to 1–3 °C. The average germination time is 18 weeks, it depends on the variety.

When growing tulips in pots, watering is needed as the soil dries out, usually 1-2 times a week. It is also necessary to apply special liquid fertilizers, which are sold in garden stores.

21 days before the expected flowering, the plants are moved to a room with a temperature of about 15 °C. They also gradually increase the lighting intensity; on the 4th day it should be maximum.

Watering continues as usual. If there are many tulips in a pot, they need more water and fertilizing to reduce competition for resources and preserve all the flowers.

Caring for blooming tulips in a pot includes the following measures:

watering 2 times a week;
feeding once every 2 weeks;
removing yellowed leaves;
protection from drafts, direct sun rays, attacks by domestic animals or birds.

Length of daylight for flowering plant must be at least 6 hours.

If there is insufficient watering, tulips may not bloom. If you overdo it with water, there is a risk of the bulbs rotting.

Forcing for the holiday

For commercial purposes, tulips are grown in winter for a certain date, for the New Year, Valentine's Day (February 14) or March 8. To get flowers for these holidays, you need to plant the bulbs in October (more late varieties) or December (early varieties).

To grow a full-fledged plant in winter, it takes 3–4 months, subject to proper care. Average term Tulip bloom in a pot - 2 weeks. To keep the buds fresh longer, the pots should be kept cool at night.

It is better to cut flowers not all at once, but as they are sold. Remove the plant with a sharp instrument and make an oblique cut. Cut tulips should be kept in water at a temperature of 3–4 °C. You can add aspirin, several crystals of potassium permanganate or the preparations “Bud”, “Flora” to the water to preserve the freshness of the flowers. It is recommended to change the water every day.

Bulb storage

After cutting tulips for sale or stopping flowering, you need to take care of preserving the bulbs. Main activities after flowering:

tear off flower stalks and leaves;
remove the bulbs from the substrate;
clean from dirt, cut off long roots;
dry;
soak in a solution of potassium permanganate, dry;
leave for storage in compliance with all rules.

You can leave the bulbs in the ground and transfer them to open ground in early March. There is a chance of re-blooming. To grow bulbs next winter, you need to use new soil.

Experienced gardeners know how to grow tulips in a pot. Beginners can also cope with the task if they study growing methods and care rules. The first time is better to choose unpretentious varieties. The reward for your efforts will be beautiful and delicate buds.

Correct storage of various tubers, bulbs and rhizomes flower crops- the main condition for obtaining abundant and bright flowering in the new season. If you do not adhere to it, part of the material will die, and the remaining specimens will produce small stems and ugly, often altered flowers. Tips on how to preserve tulip bulbs until spring are shared experienced gardeners our country.

Optimal conditions for proper storage

The main factors influencing the content of bulbs in winter period, temperature and humidity are considered. The room chosen is cool and slightly humid, so most often gardeners prefer for storage planting material basements, or tiny cellars. If you keep flower roots on the loggia, it is strongly recommended to spray them with settled water from a spray bottle.

In winter? What should you keep the planting material in? For storage in the cold season, use durable cardboard boxes without a glossy finish or patterns or ordinary garden boxes. The top of the containers must be covered with moss or covered with a layer of dry peat and river sand. Summer storage of tulips involves their timely removal and maintenance of the bulbs in suitable temperature conditions and humidity.

When is it time to dig up flowers for the winter?

When deciding how to preserve tulip bulbs in cold weather, you must take into account the timing of their collection. The traditional time for removing them from the soil is the end of June and the first 20 days of July. By this time, the leaves are already beginning to turn yellow, which means that they are ready to give up all the accumulated nutrients to the plant. The extracted bulbs are thoroughly washed to remove all adhering soil and all remaining foliage and the old bulb base are removed. If soil remains, the plant may rot or become diseased. until spring if they were wetted with water? Everything is simple here - you need to thoroughly dry the planting material for several hours under an artificial or natural canopy. According to the rules of floriculture, bulbs cannot be dug up immediately after flowering. But to save decorative look throughout the area they use a little trick. The tulips are removed with a lump of earth and set aside to ripen in a dry and slightly shaded place.

The harvested “harvest” must be sorted according to the size of the bulbs. All tiny specimens - babies - should also not be thrown away; they will quickly grow to the desired “condition” or can be used for a one-time forcing. The main condition for keeping tulip bulbs healthy and strong until spring is to keep the small root scales intact. All sorted materials are placed in separate boxes and transferred to the garden shed for storage.

The temperature should be about 20 o C, and the end of the summer period for keeping future tulips falls at the end of August, when they need to be moved to the basement or planted in open ground for the winter. Compliance with these uncomplicated conditions and requirements and is the answer to the question of beginners about how to preserve tulip bulbs until spring.

Again, this advice is suitable for those who like to experiment with growing various plants. Tulips cannot be classified as house plants. Rather, these flowers belong to the garden category. This is where we are used to seeing them in the spring. But it turns out that they can be grown quite successfully at home. In winter now it is difficult to surprise anyone with tulips. A bouquet of these flowers can easily be bought at any time of the year. But, if you give such a living bouquet in winter directly in a pot, then this is a completely different matter. And, if you also say that you grew them at home, then I think this will add additional value to your “living” gift. After all, you put your work into this living bouquet.

We grow tulips at home in winter. How to do it?

You can grow such a bouquet by a certain date. For example, by March 8th, when flowers are especially popular among us. I also think it will be nice to receive live ones for other winter holidays. The process of growing such a bouquet can be easily regulated. You can speed it up, or you can slow down the pace of cultivation a little. Everything here is regulated quite simply.

How to plant tulip bulbs?

We will plant it in a pot. Any will do. The size of the pot is up to you to determine. It all depends on what size “living” flower bed you want to end up with. You can use any soil to fill the pot. When you fill the pot with soil, you can plant tulip bulbs there. They do this very tightly, that is, they press the bulbs almost end to end. You can even plant them in two tiers, again still close to each other.

If you take a small pot, then you can plant about 20 bulbs in it. After planting is completed, the bulbs are watered, and the pot itself is then placed in a plastic bag. Next, right in this bag, the pot will need to be placed in the refrigerator. Find a place for it on the bottom shelf. You shouldn't forget about him. Remove the bag from the pot periodically, do not let the soil dry out. But you also do not need to let it dry out. Timely watering is also very important here.

How to grow?

After spending a couple of months in the refrigerator, the tulip bulbs will take root well, and you will see the first shoots, which by that time will appear from the ground. Now, it’s time to take the pot out of the refrigerator and put our tulips out for “forcing.” In the warmth, the sprouts will quickly grow. This growth will not occur due to active photosynthesis or any additional food, but due to the nutrients that are present in the bulbs themselves. That is why this process was called “forcing”.

How quickly your tulips will grow is up to you to decide. This can be adjusted very simply. If we take the average, it’s about 2 or 2.5 weeks. During this time, on average, a good bouquet grows. But, if you need to speed up this process, for example, by a certain date, then you need to place the pot of tulips in a warmer place from the window. There they will bloom much faster. And when timing doesn’t matter, then let the pot stand in a cooler place. Then the tulips will bloom much later. Here you should know that flowers that developed more slowly will be stronger than those whose growth you accelerated. Accordingly, such tulips will also last longer.

When the holiday comes, you can cut the tulips and give them to the person for whom you grew these flowers. Let this person appreciate your efforts and enjoy the winter tulips. But, you can give flowers directly in a pot, that is, without cutting them. Just like tulips, you can grow other small-bulb flowers at home. For example, crocuses, and besides them Pushkinia or Scylla. These flowers, after being in the refrigerator, bloom even faster. Even in less than 7 days. This way you get a bright, vibrant flower garden at home that will grow right before your eyes.

This video will also help you grow tulips in winter at home. Here you will also be shown several ways to do this. Let's see.

To properly store tulip bulbs, you need to choose the variety wisely and adhere to the timing of collecting planting material. Perennial herbaceous bulbous garden plant, belonging to the Liliaceae family, is represented by a very large selection of varieties and hybrid forms.

It is not difficult to save all the collected bulbs. Varietal tulips from Dutch selection, even those sufficiently acclimatized to the soil and climatic conditions of our country, often become noticeably smaller without timely replanting. Planting material should be dug up every two years. Otherwise, the bulb is gradually buried in the soil, which does not allow the crop to germinate normally. In order for the bulb to form correctly and quickly, it is advisable to break off the seed capsule in a timely manner.

In order to provide optimal comfortable conditions for laying flower buds on young bulbs. If you leave planting material deep in the soil, the bulb is exposed to negative impact excessive humidity, low temperature conditions, as well as infections. Thus, the formation of full-fledged replacement bulbs is disrupted, severe weakening, and sometimes even complete death of the planting material. Besides everything else, During the autumn digging process, it is possible to effectively reject all diseased or weakened bulbs.

Planting material should be dug up every two years.

Selecting and preparing tulip tubers for winter storage

Very important role in the matter of preserving tulip bulbs is given proper preparation planting material for laying on winter storage. The bulbs to be dug must be sufficiently clean and dry devoid of unnecessary roots and leaves. The bulbs need to be scattered thin layer in wooden boxes, which will provide good ventilation.

After the planting material has dried, the remaining soil, roots and old scales are removed. Nests that did not disintegrate during the digging process, manually are divided into bulbs. As practice shows, after digging and drying good result provides etching in a weak pink solution of potassium permanganate, which will serve as very good protection for the plant from various pests and rotting processes.

How to dig up tulips (video)

How to properly store tulip bulbs at home

The dug up bulbs can be stored both in specially designated areas and at home.

Of course, after sorting For storing tulips, it is best to select a closed, but fairly well-ventilated room, without drafts and direct sunlight. You can use the space under the bed or mezzanine for this purpose.
Selected planting material can be stored in clean cardboard boxes or wooden dry boxes, poured in a couple of layers. Very important It is sufficient to strictly control the temperature conditions in the storage room, as well as air humidity indicators. Immediately after preparation, the container must be placed at a temperature of at least 23-24°C. By the first ten days of August, the storage temperature must be lowered to 20-21°C. Around mid-September, the temperature in the storage should be reduced again to 15-16°C.

Selected planting material can be stored in clean cardboard boxes

Air humidity when stored at home should not be excessive. It is the increased amount of moisture that becomes the main cause of damage to planting material by various rots. In some years, up to a third of the bulbs are lost as a result of non-compliance with storage conditions. After the soil temperature in the flower beds drops to 12-14°C, the tulip bulbs saved from spring are planted on permanent place to the garden.
If there is no need to plant tulips in autumn period or the bulbs are intended to be used for spring forcing of early flowers, then you need to carefully wrap them in several layers of fairly thick wrapping paper with perforated holes and then place the completely finished package in the fruit and vegetable compartment of a regular home refrigerator. Also, wrapping it with sphagnum moss rather than paper gives a very good result.

Air humidity when stored at home should not be excessive

Around the first ten days of April, it is already possible to plant the ones saved until spring period tulip bulbs in relatively shallow seedling boxes filled with high-quality and loose soil substrate with sufficient fertility indicators. It is not recommended to deepen the planting material too much. It is enough to simply sprinkle with a five-centimeter layer of soil, and then water relatively generously with settled water at room temperature.

After in seedling box Mass shoots will appear, you can safely dig up the container with plants in the garden. It should be remembered that tulips planted like this in an unusual way, bloom later ornamental plants, which were planted in flower beds in the autumn.

How to store tulip bulbs (video)

Storing planting material in the cellar

Properly prepared storage – best option to save. Bulbs dug up after flowering must be carefully but thoroughly cleaned of any soil residues, and then dried for about a week at an ambient temperature of 20-25°C and a humidity of 50%. The dried material is carefully cleaned of scales and old roots, after which it is sorted depending on size and varietal characteristics.

The best place for storage is a cellar equipped with forced ventilation system and temperature regulation. Important to remember, that the storage is too dry or warm air is extremely bad influence on quality indicators and overall safety of the bulbs decorative culture. When planting specimens that have dried out during storage, very weak, sickly plants are formed that are unable to form high-quality and abundantly flowering peduncles. On such plants, all the formed buds very often wither even before the opening stage.

It is recommended that tulip bulbs dug up and prepared for long-term storage should be sorted by variety and stored separately

It is recommended that tulip bulbs dug up and prepared for long-term storage should be sorted by variety and stored separately, placed in dry and clean containers in no more than three rows. In the first month after laying, inside the storage room the temperature must be maintained at room temperature maintaining air humidity within 70-80%. It is precisely this microclimate in the cellar at the stage of flower bud formation that perfectly stimulates its accelerated development and friendly, early, abundant flowering in the future spring-summer season.

Gradually, in the process of further long-term storage in cellar conditions, the temperature drops to 17-18°C. A smooth decrease should allow the temperature in the storage to be brought to a comfortable level for decorative beautiful flowering plant the optimal level is 12-13°C. Planting material is best preserved when the humidity level inside the cellar is at standard levels of 60-70%. Only when creating optimal and comfortable conditions, tulip bulbs can not only be perfectly preserved, but also lose a minimum of varietal characteristics and basic biological qualities.

How to care for tulips after flowering (video)

If you plan to plant tulips in the old flower beds and flower beds, then it is advisable to pre-sow green manure plants that help destroy pathogenic microflora. In the soil and climatic conditions of most regions of our country, it is advisable to plant varieties and hybrids of tulips in a permanent place in open ground from mid-September to mid-October.