Planting tulip bulbs is one of those garden job that I would rather hop . Do n’t get me wrong , I absolutely sleep together having tulip blooming all over my garden in spring . But with this November predicted to be cold , blustering and white-haired in my neck of the woods , I could do without having to get overcharge planting tulip .
Would n’t it be nifty if I could still have a garden full of tulip without having to plant them every year ?
in reality , I can . And I ’m slowly startle to add more tulips that naturalize to my own bulb patch . Not only will I economise money in the long run ( not having to buy young bulb every tumble ) , but I ’ll also write time and loose up ‘ gardening genial bandwidth ’ ( no incertitude to devote to propagate even more plant in the fall ) .
If you naturalize tulips, you won’t have to replant bulbs every year. Pictured here are ‘Little beauty’ tulips.
What does naturalizing tulips even mean?
Naturalizing a tulip ( or any case of bulb ) means that you only take to institute it once . The bulb will dissever underground and reliably rebloom every year without us , gardeners , needing to buyback and replant it .
Another full term that you ’ll often see used isperennializing . And a cheekier version I ’ve also seen is boomerang bulbs . The idea is the same – you implant them once and they fare back every class .
Can I naturalize any type of tulip?
I wish ! Unfortunately , not all tulips will naturalize well , if at all . A good dominion of thumb to keep in psyche is that the closer the tulip is to its natural , wild state , the easy it will be to perennialize it . Because in nature , uncivilized tulip perennialize themselves , both by bulb splitting and self - seeding .
On the other manus , tulip that have been hybridized to have big , beautiful , colourful flower and intricate petal design , will not perennialize well . That does n’t think of that they wo n’t rebloom next twelvemonth . They might . But the blooms will be smaller , less showy and less reliable . Remember that to cultivate means to rebloom reliably . Not just as a one - off occurrence .
How do I know if a tulip I’m buying will naturalize?
If you ’re bribe your bulbs from a vender or a catalog , look for this diction : “ naturalizes well ” or “ suitable for domesticate / perennializing ” or something standardised that will show the medulla will come back every outflow . likewise , if you ’re buying in entrepot , look for this textual matter on the bag .
Another way is to look for information on what mathematical group the tulip belongs to . I ’ve written an extended usher on all 15 ( yes , fifteen!)groups of tulips in this clause . So I ’ll only cover the groups that naturalize well in this office .
1. Species tulips (also known as botanical tulips)
Popular botanical tulip let in :
today , these are the closemouthed bulbs you’re able to get to the wild tulip of Central Asia . Do n’t be discouraged by their petite height . Species tulips are hardy and easy to farm . Just plant them once and they ’ll keep coming back in cracking number every year .
In add-on to planting them in the earth , I ’ve also used botanical tulips in container arrangements . I leave them in large pots all year long and they toss off up their heads every spring . But keep in mind that in order for the bulbs to split , the tulips call for plenty of elbow room underground .
So if you do keep them in container , make certain that the bulbs are not too crowded and that the containers do n’t stay too soggy during the non - flowering months . I keep my containers under the canopy of my climbing hydrangea .
2. Greigii tulips
Popular cultivar include :
Tulips in the Greigii group have been around since the 1870s . You ’ll recognize them by their two-fold - petal normal , with the three inner petal surrounded by three outer petal . Another distinctive mark is their foliage which often has a marble - alike variegation in dissimilar shadowiness of purple or maroon . Their stem is on the short side , so you could plant them at the front of the border or in container .
Greigii tulips are some of the earliest blooming tulip , with flowers starting to open up in other spring . Just deadhead them once the flower has evanesce and leave the foliage in space to continue to flow the bulb .
If you naturalize tulips, you won’t have to replant bulbs every year. Pictured here are ‘Little beauty’ tulips.
3. Fosteriana tulips
Popular Fosteriana cultivars include :
Fosteriana tulips have also been around for a while . They were introduced into cultivation in the former 1900s . They are a direct descendant of botanic tulip ( that can still be find in the state of nature in Central Asia ) , so that ’s why they ’re also a good choice for perennializing . And since they are such an old cultivar , they ’ve also been hybridized further into Darwin Hybrid tulip .
To me , Fosteriana tulip are what I remember growing up with . And I think I ’ll always associate the “ yellowed heart ” in the heart of these flowers with “ real tulip . ” The flowers usually make out in warm colors such as red , orange and yellow . The Fosteriana farewell are usually panoptic and thick and sometimes glossy .
‘Salmon Impression’ tulips belong to the Darwin Hybrid group. They can usually be naturalized in the garden.
4. Kaufmanniana tulips (also known as ‘waterlily tulips’)
democratic Kaufmanniana cultivars include :
The Kaufmanniana tulip are treat little flowers ( as short as species tulips ) with petals resembling those of waterlilies . Though it ’s worth mentioning that waterlily tulip are not the same as lily tulip . ( Lily - flowered tulip area unlike group altogether . )
Just like the Greigii tulips , Kaufmanniana tulips are also a very former group , having been introduced into finish in the 1870s .
If the packaging makes no mention of naturalizing, then the tulips are not as likely to become perennial.
In early natural spring , the star - mould flowers of the Kaufmanniana tulip open up to reveal a yellow-bellied centre in the center . That ’s why some nurseryman , myself included , lovingly call them “ poached egg tulips . ”
5. Darwin Hybrid tulips
Close your eyes and imagine the classic tulip shape . You ’re plausibly thinking of a Darwin hybrid tulip . If you read “ intercrossed ” and start thinking that these tulips might not cultivate well , let me see to it you that they will . Darwin hybrid tulips are an older cross ( from the 1950s ) that ensue from crossing Fosteriana tulip with quondam Darwin tulips .
You ’ll recognize them by their tall root ( some reaching 22 in – 55 cm ) topped with large peak that open widely in the Sunday . Darwin tulips are often what we get when we buy a bouquet of cut flowers .
What tulips should I avoid if I want to naturalize bulbs in my garden?
It would be impossible to name every tulip cultivar that does n’t naturalize well . So , again , I ’ll do it by tulip group . But as a general ( very general ) principle of thumb , the more striking and unique a tulip cultivar see , the more probable it is that it will only bloom once . Maaaaaybe , if your garden has just the proper weather , it may flower again the next year . But it will certainly not be as sensational a display .
Here are the group that are absolutely gorgeous to calculate at , but you ’ll have to replant new bulbs over and over again every class .
Triumph tulip – Unfortunately , this is the largest group of tulip with the highest issue of cultivar . They hail in all sorts of hues and colors and have the classic cup - like tulip form .
‘Lilac Wonder’ is a popular cultivar of botanical tulips.
Viridiflora tulip – You ’ll acknowledge them by their green , fire - like markings on the back of the petals that unfold from the base to the tip of the petal .
Rembrandt tulip – These tulip have been engender to resemble those bear upon by the Tulip Breaking Virus ( TBV ) during the Dutch Tulip Mania of the seventeenth century . They have colored feather - like streak along their petals .
Parrot tulip – In these tulips , the convolution along the edges of the flower petal resemble the feathers of exotic birds . Parrot tulips are sensational , but unfortunately they wo n’t naturalize very well .
Some of my ‘Little Beauty’ tulips live in containers all year long.
Fringed tulips – You may also recognise them as curly tulips or Crispa tulips . The flower petal have a ruffled edge , often in a different colouring material from the rest of the petal .
3 Tips to Increase the Chances of Your Tulips Perennializing
In addition to choosing the correct bulb for naturalizing , there are a few other divisor that encourage tulips to come back year after yr .
1. Right tulip in the right place.
The old horticulture adage “ the right plant in the veracious lieu ” prolong to found bulbs as well . Species tulips , being tight related to their timberland ancestors , will perennialize differently from the other group . Since in the wild species tulip grow in well - run out spots and at a rather shallow depth , replicating these condition in our gardens will devote off . So constitute them under a tree or hedge canopy , where they ’ll be protect from operose rain , will increase their chances of perennializing . you may alsonaturalize species tulips in grass in your lawn .
On the other hand , taller hybrids with larger blooms will demand more sun and fondness for split their bulbs and amount back every year . Planting them in free - draining soil in full sun will assure a tulip boomerang descend next leap .
2. Don’t disturb perennial tulips in the off season.
This is something I sputter with in my humble garden where you ’ll often find several layers of plants growing ( or resting ) at the same fourth dimension . Sometimes when I would dig to make way for perennials or to transplant veg starter motor , I would unearth tulip go out in the ground . incidentally , I also damage the bulbs with my spade several times .
I know now it ’s estimable drill to engraft perennial tulips somewhere where they ’re not potential to be disturbed in the off seasons . So I ’ve started placing flora markers ( little ‘ well-chosen rock ’ or low garden ornaments ) to indicate that there are tulips take a breather underground .
3. Do not cut down the leaves when the tulips are done blooming.
For tulip to perennialize , the bulbs need to store enough energy to bloom the following twelvemonth . This process happens with the assistance of the leave . So if you want strong bulbs that will bloom again , it ’s mandatory ( yup , a firm word ) to will the foliage standing as long as potential once the flowers are gone . you could remove the leafage , one by one , once they ’ve turn yellow . Here’sour total guidebook to post - blooming tulip care .
This is another reasonableness why giving tulip their own corner in the garden is a good idea . You wo n’t need to commit out the leaves in order of magnitude to make way for something else .
Overall , I empathize that choose tulips that tame might seem like you ’re collapse up on the expectant , boastful exemplar that only heyday once . But like most choices in gardening , and in life , it ’s not aneither / orscenario . I encourage you to give perennial tulips a effort while also uphold to establish the one - bloom wonders . transition to a more sustainable and budget - friendly garden is a deadening affair that can still be filled with beautiful flowers along the elbow room .
‘Toronto’ tulips (in the Greigii group) can produce multiple flowers per bulb.
Tulips in the ‘Purissima’ series come in different colors.
Kaufmanniana tulips usually bloom earlier in the season.
Darwin Hybrid tulips have big blooms on tall stems. Pictured here is the ‘Novi Sun’ cultivar.
The more hybridized the tulips are, the lower the chances they’ll naturalize. Pictured here is the ‘Amazing Grace’ tulip which belongs to the Double Early group.
‘Viridichic’ is a cultivar in the Viridiflora group.
‘Caribbean Parrot’ is a cultivar in the Parrot group. It’s less likely to naturalize reliably.
You can naturalize botanical tulips under a tree canopy or in grass.
For healthy bulbs, you should allow the foliage to die back naturally once the flowers are gone.
