After all the mid-summer catalogue busywork, the list making, the dreaming in color, the potting soil mess, the ritual chilling of the little bundles of bulbs from September to November like some demented grocer, in other words, the really fun part of the whole tulip affair, some seven months later comes the sober truth. Will they or won’t they bloom?
Which is why I’m suggesting you might want to skip over several of the above steps and just order lots of ‘Queen of the Night.’ Never has this tulip disappointed. The color might be a little stressed this year and veering off its normal rich aubergine due to the unseasonably warm temps we’ve had, but it’s hands down the most reliable tulip for the 6-week prechilling regimen. Just be sure to keep fruit away from the bulbs while in the refrigerator, or the ethylene gas emitted can cause the flower buds to “blast” and not form properly.
I went for orange and yellow this year Denise, though I have grown Q of N in the past. Big Smile which is a yellow will actually run for 2 years here as long as there are no standing water issues. There is nothing more festive than a tulip.
A neighbor did the whole chilling thing and they all opened just in time for last week’s 87 degree day.
I’ll have to enjoy your photos instead.
Kathy, I tried some new kinds this year, but it was either the heat or the fact that some bulbs maybe don’t force well. Whatever the case, I dumped out a few pots that never bloomed.
Hoov, 87 degrees and tulip petals don’t get along at all. I moved my pots into the shade when the temps jumped up.