Plant the Tulips Tips Up

I made it to the store to pick up tulips. My tulip picks aren't the most daring or dramatic but when my decisions are dependent on what cheap garden centers have left late at the end of the season, you become more creative working with less.

This is what I ended up with. Some bags of 12, others of 38.

And I have pretty simple tastes. I don't like ruffles on my tulips because they remind me of a trashy Easter get-up. I tend to stay away from the Holland bulb catalogues because of the multiple choices I am not sure I'll end up liking, and because I don't want to spend hundreds of dollars on bulbs I might not get around to planting.

I've never planted tulips according to the how-to advice before. I usually just dug down a few inches in a little circle, threw them in tip-side-up and covered with whatever soil was there.  They came up fine. I never kept track of where I planted what or if the total number planted was the total number which ultimately bloomed.  And so the next spring I was totally shocked to see such a nice display of color.  Sort of like finding a ten dollar bill you forgot about in a jacket you hadn't worn all year.

However, this year I decided to be a little bit more responsible by following a few guidelines.  Of course in order to see if it was successful I have to wait 143 more days. 

So I pulled out the old bulb planter tool my mother gave me for a birthday gift twenty years ago, my shovel, a bucket of sand and a watering can.  By the way, bulb garden experts advise to measure the temperature of the soil with a special dirt thermometer, not the turkey one I assume. The temp is to range between 40 and 50 degrees.  Guess what? It's 45 degrees out today! Good enough.

Turn the dirt over a foot or so where you plan to plant just so it's loose enough you don't have to work as hard making the holes with the tool.  Use the bulb tool--it's a good indicator of how far down to plant.  Make the holes, space according to the intended look you want. Who cares if it's exactly four inches apart. This is garden art we're talking about here. Go crazy! Throw a little sand in the hole. Place the tulip in tip-end-up. Cover with dirt and then water. Oh, and one more thing, the tulips come in packages which are labeled early, mid and late. Buy a few of each to extend blooming times.