Elijah,

Oh NO!! Please don't give up on them until you see if they are any good! And yes, this is what happens if you start too many seeds and they all decide to grow.

I don't know what zone you are in, but I am in Zone 6b and we have a micro-climate in our backyard against a tall stone wall that receives a lot of sun in the winter.. This area has allowed me to keep some dahlias in the ground for the last 5 years. they are very close to the wall and this year I planted about 30 bulbs for an experiment. They will be heaped up with mulch for the winter and I can only hope for the best. I don't know what your yard situation is so you may not be able to grow them outside but they may be OK in an unheated garage with some protection. Good Luck and i hope in the future to see a few more of them bloom for you as nice as the first pictures you posted. I guess you don't need any more seeds do you.... ;-)...Donna

Thanks, Donna.

I really don't think I can fit it in my house this year.

I'm thinking maybe covering it in a foot of mulch/straw. Then, wrapping the entire planter in some type of sheets/tarp, and then placing it in my unheated garage. And then praying.

Has anyone had success with this in zone 7?

Elijah

Hey Elijah...why don't you put them in the garage now, stop watering and let them go dormant (remove the leaves when they are all brown), then pull the bulbs up and store them in paper sacks in an inside closet for a couple months and when you replant you'll be flush with blooms??

K

K,

I like the idea of having lots of blooms, but, after they start blooming it will be in middle of the winter and I will still have no room to grow them!

Would this work if I left them in the pot or do I need to remove each one and out them in a bag? It's a lot of bulbs to dig up...

I have little experience with dormancy...

Elijah,

I think you might let them grow for as long as possible before you put them away for the winter. It's still early and we might go well into Oct without a frost. Since you're going to store them for the winter and not going to try to make anything bloom for the holidays (and yes, you can leave them in the pots) why not make their winter as short as possible. If you have a garage you could bring them out during the day and back inside the garage for the nights that get too cold. I know it sounds like a lot of work...You can bring them for good when it gets too much for you or the weather does finally turn too cold.
You can let them dry out (in the pots) and let the leaves turn brown naturally (which could take a few weeks) or you can just chop them off. Better for the bulbs if you let them dry naturally but whatever is easier for you. Once they've dried I don't think I'd water them at all until next spring. Maybe you can cover the pots (when dry) with a couple of towels for the winter and just go on with your life until spring...these are just suggestions of course and not cast in stone. Maybe someone else will have a thought or two...

Last winter I pulled about 25 bulbs from pots (unfortunately not all that I have) bagged and labeled them and then put them in larger paper bags and stored them in the garage against the wall closest to the house. A few degrees warmer close to the house rather than an outside wall might help. All of the bulbs lived ( I might have lost a couple of tiny ones) but all in all they were fine and I'm in Zone 6b, you're in 7..you're in what we call the banana belt!!

Donna

Thanks Donna,

I will do as you say.
I just fear they might succumb.
Would be a waste after so much TLC..