At the end of their flowering period, tulips have completely exhausted themselves. However, the summer garden soil is far too restless for a well-deserved rest, as people are constantly planting, raking, weeding and watering. It is better if your tulip bulbs spend the summer above ground. Read here how to store the tubers skillfully until autumn.
How should you oversummer tulip bulbs?
In order to successfully oversummer tulip bulbs, they should be dug up after the leaves have dried, removed from the leaves and stored in a cool, dry and airy place. Wrap the bulbs in thin fleece or store them in sand, peat or a wooden box.
Proper storage requires this chronology of preparation
So that tulip bulbs do not go to their summer camp completely exhausted, they have to fill their empty energy stores in advance. The necessary nutrients are within reach in the leaves; However, it requires a little patience from the gardener until the energy is transferred into the bulb's interior. How to handle the process with expertise:
- Cut off withered flower heads as soon as possible so as not to waste energy on seed growth
- Wait until all the leaves have yellowed and shrunk
- Carefully dig up the tulip bulbs with a digging fork or a hand shovel
- Cut off the withered leaves with a sharp knife
The tubers are cleaned with a rough-haired brush. Damaged or rotten specimens are sorted out as they are not suitable for storage.
This is how tulip bulbs get through the summer he althy
The summer quarters for tulip bulbs should be cool and airy. Under these conditions, the survival organ of a tulip goes into a restful growth state. We have put together the best ideas for an adequate storage space for you here:
- Wrap each flower bulb in air-permeable, thin fleece (€34.00 on Amazon)
- Fill a box with dry sand or peat to store the tulip bulbs
- Lay out the tubers on an air-flown wire rack
- Store tulip bulbs in a wooden box lined with paper
Regeneration in summer camp runs smoothly when it is dark and dry here. A temperature level of 5 to 10 degrees Celsius is ideal. Please make sure that the onion skins do not touch each other. An inspection every 2 weeks is recommended to sort out moldy flower bulbs.
Tip
Late blooming tulip varieties are far from having given up their leaves in May. To still make room for summer planting, dig up the wilted tulip bulbs along with the green leaves. In a hidden niche in the garden, plant the flower bulbs in the ground again until the leaves can be cut off. The tulip bulbs then move into their summer camp with full energy depots.
