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planting bulbs in late November?

8 years ago

Hi all,

I want to plant some tulip bulbs at my mom's house as a wedding gift to her and her husband, who live in Central Kansas. Their wedding is on Nov. 22nd 2014, and I won't be able to make it down any earlier than that weekend. I'm wondering if it will still be ok to plant them at that time of year, or if there was anything I could do before then to ensure they set (get them started rooting in a pot now then transplant to ground Nov. 22?)?

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

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Comments (8)

dbarron
8 years ago
Err tulips are nice...but I'd think something that would persist more than a single season would be better (than tulips, which are usually planted as annuals in most of the US).

That being said, if you can dig them into the ground appropriately, keep them cool and dry till then.

If ground is frozen and covered with snow...we can't help you.
runrabbitrun01
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks for the advice, dbarron! Do you have any suggestions as to good perennial bulbs? I'd like to be able to plant a variety of colors...

Thanks!
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Congratulations! I just went through my inventory and discovered I only had a problem with late planted tulip bulbs which had a fungus. Last winter I planted 17 varieties, 6 to 11 weeks late (should have been planted in mid-September while I planted from November to December 6th). They have all just bloomed perfectly. I was only disappointed by Meissner Porzellan (small flowers of insignificant color and plants of uneven size) and had almost complete failure with Page Polka (only 20% bloomed). I recall those bulbs were quite dried up and covered with fungus when I was planting them. All other tulips, even though they had all sprouted and dried up a bit before getting planted, bloomed just fine. I hope you had as much pleasure from your tulips this spring as I had from mine. I had people stopping and commenting on how beautiful they were. And I loved them, too. Every day first thing in the morning I would walk to the window to take a look at them. Of new purchases, tulips that I had never seen before, I especially liked Blushing Lady - very tall, warm pastel yellow with pink blush, very large flowers with long petals rounded at the ends, opens wide but doesn't go completely flat, blends nicely with other pastel or warm colors, and Toyota - great shade of warm red with a thin cream edge - just lovely. They have rather small flowers which hardly open. They look much, much better than in the pics from googling images. Also Black Hero looked nice en masse with Queen of the Night. I will not be lifting that many this June as I had adequate blooms from most tulips I hadn't lifted (because there were just too many..) Exception: Blue Heron, but those were sort of weak in their first year as well. So I will only be lifting the varieties I want to plant elsewhere due to esthetic reasons. Happy spring :-)
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Most spring blooming bulbs can take quite a bit of cold. Particularly daffodils and crocuses. Later bloomers probably aren't going to be tricked by this weather, though I suppose it's possible. You can still plant bulbs now. You don't want to wait too long since many bulbs need a cold period to bloom. I have planted daffodils in early February and had them bloom, but I think that was pushing it. Most of the time I plant bulbs in late November, early December. -Ais.
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The rule of thumb is to plant the early-flowering ones early, with more leeway on the later-flowering varieties. I don't know if there's any science behind this, but it's what I've read and always assumed to be true. If you're in an area that gets colder earlier, you have a shorter window; here on the Cape I've (occasionaly) planted bulbs at Christmas with no problem. It isn't something I'd schedule that way, it just ... happened. This year's new bulbs are sitting on my desk, waiting for the soil to be dry enough to work. I hope that happens this week, but we'll have to wait and see.
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Is there a reason why you want to wait til mid-December before you plant? I've been known to plant tulip bulbs very, very late. June. So equal to your December. By then, the bulbs would be showing shoots, and if light was present to the bulbs which patiently waited their turn, then those shoots would be green. A colleague advised me to plant any bulb with green shoots quite shallow, so that the green was above the soil. He said otherwise the shoots would burn. So I did that. Those bulbs were not for my garden and so were not available for me to play with after their flowering. I cannot say how they fared but I would guess that they flowered fine. I think their after-care should have included some protection from the summer sun and heat. If you are not dealing with thousands of bulbs (and I suspect you aren't) maybe you could keep them away from light so that their shoots do not go green. Then you can plant them at the correct depth (about 4 inches).
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NHBabs z4b-5a NH
8 years ago
Daffodils are perennial and come in pinks, yellows, oranges and white.

Alliums are perennial and come in purple, white and yellow. Both of these types are quite pest-proof as well.

Although it isn't recommended, I have planted bulbs in late November. Plant deep (don't cheat on the recommended depth), water in well, and add a light coating of mulch to prevent heaving.)
OldDutch (Zone 4 MN)
8 years ago
Tulips can be planted with no special treatment as long as you can still dig the holes for them. Kansas should definitely provide enough winter cooling for flowers next spring, even from a November planting, although the bloom is likely to be later than if the planting were in the ground earlier. They definitely benefit from being lifted and reset every year; however some judicious fertilization a couple of times in the spring will result in better year to year survival without digging. Or they can be treated like an annual display.

I plant my tulips with my garlic. I lift both yearly and if the stems are left intact my tulips of all sizes cure very nearly 100%. They are lifted earlier than the garlic though and are definitely cured before the garlic is ready to dig; so the tulips are done and stored before the racks are needed for the alliums.
emerogork
8 years ago
I have heard tell of people using a pick axe to chop through frozen ground to plant bulbs. I have never tried it.

Many claim that tulips tend to be annual but I must have stubborn ones that have been coming back year after year. Occasionally, I do add more but it is rare.

The picture shows a 50 year old Forsythia growing with Orange Emperor tulips.
runrabbitrun01
Original Author
8 years ago
Thank you all for the feedback!!! and lovely photo, Emerogork2! I love those colors together!

After some more thought, I'm planning on going with a peony bush or two. My mom had peonies that she loved at the house she moved from when she got engaged, so it will be perfect to plant some new ones at her new home. Plus, they grow well in our zone. Now it's on to peruse the peony forum to find the perfect one!

Thanks for your tips on planting in late November.. We'll give it a try!
emerogork
8 years ago
Look up "Festiva Maxima" it is bright white with small streaks of dark red. My favorite.
runrabbitrun01
Original Author
8 years ago
That is gorgeous.. looks very classic! I bet it smells nice.

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