LEFT OVER BULBS
I have gotten several calls since Christmas asking, “What can be done with spring flowering bulbs that were purchased with the intent of planting during the fall season, but the chore never got accomplished?”
It is too cold and too frozen to actually put them into the ground now. So let’s examine what really happens to those bulbs when things are done properly.
First, they are planted in the ground while it is still fairly warm outside. This gives the bulbs a chance to develop a good root system before the cold weather comes along. Once the roots are developed, the bulb then wants to push up the flower stems…but then it gets too cold, and so they wait until next spring to continue. Once the warmer weather arrives, they bloom.
But what would happen if you cooled them first then planted them later? That is pretty much the only option you have this late in the season, so go put your bulbs into the refrigerator, right now for a minimum of eight weeks (ten weeks would be better). Do not put them into the freezer! When the eight weeks or so are up, plant your bulbs in pots filled with soil and they will start growing immediately and then bloom. They will not, however develop a good root system, so when they are finished blooming, you will probably need to toss the bulbs into the trash or recycle in a compost pile.
When you plant your “pre-cooled” bulbs into pots of soil, they will also want to skip the growing stage and simply go straight into the blooming stage. The problem here is that they will bloom extremely short. To fix this problem before it happens, simply place a single layer of newspaper on top of the newly planted pots of bulbs to encourage stretching of the foliage and flowering stems. After they achieve 8” to 10” of stretched out growth, remove the paper. Cut the foliage and stems at ground level during the “budded” stage and place them in water.
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