tulips - perennial or not

[jerryshenk]

I am a little confused about tulips - are they perennials or not. Or, perhaps some are perennials. I got some tulips from Breck's and planted them last fall. I'm pretty sure the Red Dynasty are perennial - I've seen that stated on their site. I also got some Apricot Beauty bulbs - I don't see them listed as perennial but, they seem to have already expanded because some places where I planted a single bulb, there is also a 2nd bloom. I also was given some old bulbs (poorly stored) by a friend - Miranda, El Ninio and Akibono. Some of those tulips have come up but there is only one bud...not surprised, just glad some made it.

Should I expect all of these tulips to multiply over the years or will most of them just eventually die off? Is there anything I can do to encourage them to multiply like digging them up and replanting every couple years? When I planted them, I did so with the expectation that they would multiply and eventually get crowded like daffodils. If they do multiply, I'm also interested in how aggressively they do that.

My long-term goal with the flowers is to have something blooming all spring so I'd like to plan appropriately and not be disappointed when/if my tulips start not showing up in the spring.

[viktoria]

Most tulips just gradually (in just 2-3 years) die off. Exceptions are species, Kauffmannianas, Fosterianas and Greigiis and maybe some others. Considering how inexpensive many tulips are, it is not worth the effort to try to keep them going; just plant new ones. Even the second year is already a disappointment.

Viktoria

[Tigger]

For me, the big pretty hybrids don't actually die off, they put up annoying foliage with no blooms unless you yank them out of the ground before they make offsets, which means just after they bloom. There are some big pretty hybrids that do o.k., if you plant them DEEP (a good 8") in good loam (as they would grow in Pia's neck of the woods). For example, I think I got 4 years of bloom from Ivory Floradale even in our Mid-Atlantic heavy soil (not too far from you, Jerry). Look for Darwin Hybrid tulips, which are not the same as Darwin Group tulips (now mostly in the "single late" class). The Darwin Hybrids have T. fosteriana blood in them. A good bulb seller like Brent and Becky's will steer you the right direction. Still, with deer around, most of these tall tulips become brunch. Or the bleeping rabbits will eat the bottoms out of the blooms from below.

We do, however, enjoy the smaller ones like tulipa clusiana and its relatives like 'Tinka.' The ones Vik mentions would also do well.They may not perennialize as well as narcissus, but you should get 5 or more years from them. (I'm not sure you can kill T. greigii.) Easier to protect from the deer, too.

David

[jerryshenk]

I think we do have pretty good dirt here. This is "old ground", not part of a new development so maybe there's some hope. I think maybe I'll add a bit to what's here this year just to keep things going while learning what work for these particular ones that I have. The Red Dynasty are a Darwin Hybrid so one can only hope. I'm trying to cover up an old stump so I can feel better about not digging it out;)


Red Dynasty tulips by jerryshenk, on Flickr

[kHT]

Here the tree rats dig them up and I'm tired of feeding their habits!! Now they are turning to the lilies.

[jerryshenk]

We definitely have plenty of squirrels around here but, we feed 'em good so maybe they won't be interested in tulip bulbs;) We have chestnut, walnut and pecan trees (just under 100 of them)...maybe that will work in favor of the tulips. So far, I think only one got dug up. Perhaps that would be another argument for planting them a little extra deep.

This whole gardening thing is pretty new to me...at least at this scale. I never thought my 3' x 10' patch by the walk was all that small but, now I have room to mess up BIG time!...having a blast;)