How do you store your bulbs and tubers?

I'm digging my dahlias and glads today, and I have named varieties. I want to be able to store them so I can keep them separate, but I'm clueless as to how to do that without having so many different boxes of them sitting around all winter. I'm wondering if it's okay to put them in paper bags? All the directions I've read say to put them in shallow boxes and cover with sand or peat moss.

I'm interested in learning how you all store yours, and if you keep them separate or just throw them all together?

make out a label tie it to the stem of the plant, place it in a wooden box and cover with damp peat, compost or coir compost.

one yr I took all the dirt off my canna and stored them in peanuts in the basement-BAD idea-they all dried up

The last yr i just left the dirt on the roots and tossed them in a box in the cellar-they are fine!!!

I hate digging n storing stuff.
My glads from the co-op never made it back into the ground after their first yr-dahlias got rid of them too! I have a few cannas that i just keep growing all yr in pots!

Good luck Joan! ;)

Joan,

Here's a great link...

http://pss.uvm.edu/ppp/articles/sbulbf.html

Thanks everyone. Carla, your link is great. I'm going to save it and refer back to it after my bulbs are dry.

This is what I came up with for the mean time. I took boxes and built compartments to put each type in. These are some of the glads. I already packed some of the boxes to the garage. Once they are dry I will put some sand over them.

The dalhlias are already in the garage too, but I did pretty much the same with them. I dug them and layed them out to dry for several hours, then put each in their compartments, labeled them and put sand over them.

When it gets cooler in the crawl space and the bulbs are dry, I'll take them down there for the winter.

Sound like this will work?

I would still like to hear from more people as to how you store your bulbs.

Thanks everyone. Carla, your link is great. I'm going to save it and refer back to it after my bulbs are dry.

This is what I came up with for the mean time. I took boxes and built compartments to put each type in. These are some of the glads. I already packed some of the boxes to the garage. Once they are dry I will put some sand over them.

The dalhlias are already in the garage too, but I did pretty much the same with them. I dug them and laid them out to dry for several hours, then put each in their compartments, labeled them and put sand over them.

When it gets cooler in the crawl space and the bulbs are dry, I'll take them down there for the winter.

Sound like this will work?

I would still like to hear from more people as to how you store your bulbs.

Joan, I especially like the use of "free" USPS tape. A nice touch. The post office is a great source of free storage devices.
My concern with your design is that I know I would drop the box and scatter everything, then I won't be able to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. I use old nylon hose to bind the bulbs together. I can slip in a permanent label and no matter how clumsy I am, still be able to tell what they are (if I can remember where I hid them!)

LOL George, that's the only tape I had in the house. Worked great for what I needed.

I too am concerned about dumping them. I never thought about using nylon hose. TYhat's a great idea! I have enough of that around that's not good for anything else anymore. I may just try that.

After you put them in the hose, do you hang them up or put them in a box with sand or something on them?

I hang them in plain sight so I can find them later. Getting old sucks!

Thanks! I think I'll hang mine in the crawl space so I don't lose them and remember to check on them when I check on the brugs. The brugs are getting the best spots in the crawl space already, so hanging the bulbs would be nice.

Two years ago, I partitioned off a small section of my basement for a "root cellar". It is on the end of the basement that's below grade, and in a corner so there are 2 outside walls. It is very small, just 3' x 5', and I insulated the stud walls to the basement area (as well as the low dropped ceiling I added) so it stays cool and fairly uniform in temps. I even found an old short door at a yard sale that's about 5-1/2' tall and just fits! I only have a couple of make-shift shelves in there, and so far, it's enough since I don't store root veggies in there. (I had planned to, but found I forgot about them and they went to waste!)

I use it to store garden bulbs, corms, amaryllis bulbs, and even for a dark period for my Christmas cactus. Works great. Sometimes I just chuck bulbs in a plastic nursery pot after they are dry... and hope I don't tip it and spill the contents and forget what's what. I think the idea of old nylons that could hang would work better.

Most of my basement gets too much light for bulb storage, and is probably a bit too warm even though we don't heat it.

You can also use mesh onion bags. I don't store my dahlias in stocking or onion bags because the tubers have a tendency to sprout early and I don't want to break the sprouts when I am trying to remove them from the bags. I rubber band a label to each stem and store them in boxes lined with newspaper and filled with slightly damp peat moss. I keep them in my garage which stays in the 40's. About once a month I pour a little water in if the peat moss seems dry. This has worked fine for me for years.

Last year someone recommended wrapping each clump in newspapers and storing in empty dog food bags (the kind with the waxy lining so it retains the moisture). I haven't tried that one; if it works it would be a lot cleaner and easier. Has anyone tried it?

JoanJ I cut my tubers the same day I dig them. I dig only the amount I can cut with the time I want to spend that day. As soon as I have twenty or so dug I hose the dirt off to let them dry . I cut them and mark the roots with a flair pen being carefull not to tear the skin. This way the tuber is marked and ready to be planted in the spring. then I put them in large zip lock bags which I leave open and put them into boxes with the tops open. Then I put them in a concrete root cellar and try to keep the temp around forty degrees.

I have found out the hard way all about digging to soon I let mine turn brown first. The longer I leve them in the ground the better they store. I know some day we will get a hard freeze rather than a frost and all the pretty ones rot first.

I know people who do store them full of dirt in double grocery sacks and do just fine putting them in their garage. I use mine for my cars and it is wet because of the water tracked in and this just won't work for me. It's a lot eaiser to cut prior to storage because I have lots to cut and it would take forever in the spring.

well this works for me but some day when I get brave I am going to try to bury them and cover them with a tarp covered with sawdust. Prior to building a green house I over wintered fushia hanging baskets and gerainiums and saved about 90%.

Noh20 tried it twice worked once think maybe when it didn't I used clumps that layed around before I baged them up want me to try it again? I surley have enough to waste. Regards Ernie

It might be a good experiment Ernie. You probably have plenty of dog food bags available with your pets!

I like your idea of putting them in ziplocks with the tops open - definitely cleaner and easier than storing them in peatmoss. And then there is the whole issue of peatmoss not being a renewable source.....

I always leave my tubers in the ground for 2 weeks after the frost kills the foliage. I was told that if you dig them up sooner they will rot in storage.

I can never figure out where to divide them in the fall. I always have to wait until spring when I can see the 'eye' swelling. Do you think storing whole clumps instead of individual tubers in ziplock bags would still work?

N0h20 The two week part is important you don't say wheather you cut the stalks off and allow the clumps to cure .If you do don't leave the cut main stalk open to fill with rain water as this will promote rot. I cut about a foot up and cover the large open stems or break them over to shed the water.

Some types are so easy to cut due to the eyes being prominent others are tough and you really have to look. Thats why I only dig what I am going to cut that day because the longer you wait the harder it is to see.

PS just try one or two this year to see how it works for you. Last thing I want is to have my yard laced with salt because I told some one to do something that backfired.

Remember not all the tubers have eyes that are real prominent look for slight bumps kinda of off color . Some times I feel them with my wet finger.

Be brave and don't try to save every tuber in the clump. .Try one do the rest the way you usually do.Regards Ernie

Hi JoanJ:
I have been growing 12 " Dahlias for anumber of years and have tried all suggested ways of storing them without success, the tubers all shrivel up . I have tried, sawdust, peat, paper bag, no covering, perlite, re-potted into pots under a flourecent light 5 hours per day . No success. I don't have cold room so it's the basement for storage. The garage wall near the house gets down to 0--5 Celcius.

I am following this thread with great interest in the event someone comes up with a solution I have not tried.

I just buy new tubers from Ferncliff Gardens in B.C. each summer and chalk it up to new spring purchases.

Thanks for the tips Ernie. Yeah, I leave about a foot of stalk on them and cover the top with aluminum foil - I learned that from a woman in the local dahlia society and it works great. I will try your suggestions in cutting the tubers although I don't know if I will have many tubers to cut. It was a terrible year for dahlias and almost everything else. It rained almost every day and my yard was underwater a lot of the time. I had started the tubers in pots when they started sprouting and normally I would transplant them around mid-May after the last frost. I couldn't even get them in the ground until July. They really struggled and most of them never bloomed. It will be interesting to see if they store well after being waterlogged all summer.

Illiya, are your dahlias in pots or in the ground? You don't want to let the tubers freeze but they need 2 weeks in the ground after a killing frost in order to cure. Otherwise they don't make it in storage. This is true for standard dahlias; I don't know if it applies to the 12" ones.

Illiya I don't know how far the ground freezes in zone 5A nor how long it's cold for but the shriveling up sounds like the tuber is not being cured prior to digging.Then again it also sounds like it could have been left exposed prior to storage.

If the bulbs were not plump when you dug them they won't get better in storage. I make sure mine get well watered in Aug and if you use fertilizer do not do it after the plants are flowering as it promotes rot.

I gave a guy 20 bulbs who did'nt have a good place to store his bulbs. I told him to put them in an ice chest and when the cold spells come to shut the lid and reopen it every couple days to let excess moisture out and air in yes they need air any way he came back for 40 more and it works for him.

Last of all you may be doing nothing wrong as some are tougher than others. Ask the pros which are known to be easy keepers. I notice my dinner plates don't store as well as most of my others, some times only one or two tubers per clump.Good luck this year Ernie.

Nho20 I was going to tell you to use foil or saran wrap but after said you did't like to use peat I thought you may not want the mess of the foil either.

People in the D club have been after me to join but I am a hermit. After my commute to and from work I just want to stay home. I could learn a lot from those folks maybe when I retire.

Thanks so much for all the helpful input. I have read this thread, but after being away from home for almost a week, I'm not absorbing it too well. I'll read it over again tomorrow when I'm fresh.

I am a little worried now that I dug them too soon. But, they are dug and I'm not going to put them back in the ground. :) They are curing in the garage and I will decide how I am going to store them for sure after I study all the great tips. I may try several different ways to see which works best this winter.

question answered please. are they curing if they have received a couple of frosts and you have not taken off the foliage yet?
most of mine received a small frost about 14 days ago effecting the top most leaves. another frost about 7 days ago effected them a bit more. yesterday i popped off the leaves of all but a couple that haven't been effected by the frosts at all. unfortunately i hadn't read this thread about leaving 12 inches on the stalks so most are 3-9 inch stalks.
now what? do they cure with the leaves on?
help!!!!!!!!!!!!!! please. i would love for some of these to come back into my garden next year. last year was a washout. all came out dried up, but i didn't do any curing but to let them dry out after they came out of the earth and i washed them off, which i'm not suppose to do either. lol
thanks
debi z

now that the leaves are blackened lift your plants. Remove bulbils of your Gladioli and store seperate but label them. Leaving the long stem I think stops rot going into the bulb. Set them somewhere airy to let the wind dry off the soil. Do the same for your Dahlias.

I just moved last December, and when I was clearing out under the basement stairs, I found a brown paper bag labeled calla lily. I threw it in with other things from in there and it was moved to northern Michigan. I had not planted them for 2 years at least. This summer I planted them and believe it or not they bloomed. So, they seem to thrive with some neglect, too, I guess, or just plain luck.

gardenermaid,
....You know that Walmart can store bulbs for years, I would have given them a try also.
;-) Shirley

I found this site which gives very detailed instructions on digging, dividing and storing dahlias, complete with pictures. It is from the Colorado Dahlia Society.

http://www.dahlias.net/dahwebpg/TuberStor/TuberStor1.htm

Thanks Candy! I'm gonna go check it out and add it to my favorites list. I already know that I'll do that because I'm an information collector. LOL

Me too Joan! The tricky part is getting it organized so I can access what I need when I need it.

When I die and people see all my files (hardcopy and computer) they are going to think I was nuts! They probably already do but that will prove it!

Noh20 looked at your link, pretty good instructions I could have used some of this years ago. I did pick up something I never thought of the post hole digger, Ernie

I'm glad you saw it, Ernie, I was going to email it to you.

The thing that really interested me was the part about digging the tubers up 4 to 8 days after frost kills the foliage because that is when they begin to make eyes or shoots. I had always heard that the tubers needed to stay in the ground two weeks to ripen or they would rot in storage. What did you think of that?

My ex-DH said it was really cold out your way. Did you get snow?

Noh20 no snow but cold North East wind. Well lets just say mine are going to stay in the ground because they rot to bad.

You know they wrote that for a general guide and it is very good but they also included the standard disclaimer which makes sense , check with your local experts. I have seen some of mine sprout but not very many and I can't see where they have ever been hurt from the little bit of sprouting.

Regards Ernie

We are getting LOTS of snow. We had about 5 inches on the ground before today, and they say we should have 7 inches more today. Looks like it's gonna happen too. How long 'til spring? LOL

I dug mine shortly after the killing frost, because I was worried about being able to dig them if we got snow. I guess we'll see how well they last the winter.

Saturday I planted the rest of my spring blooming bulbs. That was interesting. I had to shovel the snow off the flowerbeds before I could plant them. The ground wasn't froze though, so hopefully they will settle in under their nice warm blanket of snow.