Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
nylisa_gw

too late to plant bulbs in Alexandria?

nylisa
16 years ago

brought bulbs from ny, tulips and daffodils. Is it too late to plant? what zone is Alexandria? Hope to get a community garden plot in January, anybody community gardening?

Thanks!

Lisa

Comments (5)

  • bubba62
    16 years ago

    More than likely they'll be fine. I planted some daffs on Christmas eve.

  • nylisa
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Exactly what I wanted to hear, thanks Bubba! Happy new Spring Flowers 2008!

  • meldy_nva
    16 years ago

    Daffs will do just fine, even if planted in late January [it's possible as long as the soil isn't frozen]. They'll just bloom a bit later than usual.

    Tulips may or may not do well because they want 30 to 50 "cold days" where the soil is below 36°F. If you have been keeping the bulbs in the refrig, you can add in that time when counting cold days. The variation in cold days required depends on the species. BTW, tulips look lovely, but rarely do well in our area due to the clay soil, as well as tulip-snacking squirrels. Improve your chances of success by planting the bulbs in soil which has been amended to be "light" (lots of perlite) or -a bit chancy but easier- plant the bulbs to sit on top of about 3" of coarse gravel with more gravel surrounding the bulb. I used aquarium gravel one year, and that seemed to do okay. 1"-inch wire mesh laid on top of the soil, under 2" mulch will deter most squirrels while permitting the plant to grow and bloom.

    BTW, in spite of the blustery winds, I've only counted 6 cold days since fall [central Fairfax County].

  • nylisa
    Original Author
    16 years ago

    Thanks for the time and temp info! I did plant the tulips, but they were in bad shape. Just in case they might not all be dead already, I planted them with garlic cloves, which has worked in past years to keep away the squirrels (which are Alfred Hitchcock in quantity here). At least I won't be shoo-ing away the deer, too. Started planting the daffodils, but it got too cold to be fun. More tomorrow. They feel kinda soft and unsubstantial, too, but out of 100, something's gotta come!

  • garden_junkie_carrie
    16 years ago

    I did the same thing last year with my tulips, daffies, and crocus. I finally got them planted in late Jan (I'm in southwestern VA) and all of them came up. The daffies and crocus bloomed but the tulips only got really big, pretty green leaves. Of course, they were all shredded in early May when we got a freak hail storm that stripped most of my plants to the stem/ground.
    I just planted more in late December (I'm great at buying them at the right time, I just can't ever seem to get them planted right away). Praying these do better this year and that we have no freak storms. I've also tried the tip with the chicken wire this year to keep my little pesky friends from eating all my hard work ;)