I planted 389 bulbs 10-08 - when do you think they'll bloom?

I'm a first time bulb planter. I planted crocus, daffs, snowdrops, anemones, hyacinths, iris and hundreds of tulips - all on October 22nd of last year. Does anyone have experience on how long it may take for a tulip bloom to come forth? I have a few snowdrops and crocus with blooms, and daff shoots are about 3 inches. There are some tulips that are 2-3 inches up. I'm trying to plan several garden parties/teas and would like to know if anyone out there can give me a clue how long it will be before I have some tulip bloomes, based on how long it takes from the first sprout showing. Anyone? Thanks so much.

Depending on what kind of bulb there should have been info on whether it was early, mid or late spring blooming.
Tulips vary...listed by division
http://www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com/spring/genus.php?genusid=55

april showers bring may flowers.

Daffs also vary by variety, early, mid or late.

Karen

Dare I ask why 389 bulbs and not say 390 or 400?

I have Iris' flowering at the minute and I have daffodils still sprouting - most of my neighbours have daffodil flowers but not me yet.

If you followed the instructions for planting you should be in flowerland soon. It's going to be beautiful.

I agree with all the others, depending on the flowering time for the particular bulbs, some tulips flower April, May or even late June, same with all the others, it also depends of light or shade, soil type and heat/cold. plants have a better idea of nature than most humans and they wont flower outdoors till nature tells them it is the right season/temp etc, I would think IF you have some beginning to show growth, then they are well on there way to starting to grow and bloom, make sure you keep the earth weed free and offer a handfull of feed around the bulbs after flowering and dont cut off the green foliage, you let this die down naturally as this slow yellowing sends food back down into the bulb storage to help them build up strength for the following year, once the foliage becomes brown or dried, you can just gently pull this away without damage to the bulb, make sure you put in labels or mark where the bulbs are after flowering or you may damage.stand or dig them up over the summer autumn. hope this is of some help to you, all you need now is some patience and a camera to remind you of all your hard work. Good luck. WeeNel.

389??? Good Lord, I've got like 20 - at MOST! lol

All I know is you better post some pics so we can see that flowerland!!!! PLEASE!!!!!!!


Kristy

This will be beautiful holding for pictures!!

Where did Xgapeach go???

She is watering...lots of bulbs,,,,

My tulips started blooming this week. I only have 8 though.

I haven't done bulbs or corms in the past and this was my first year doing some also, so Peach, I have no advice for you. But maybe someone has some for us both! I planted close to 40 crocus and had a total of 4 blooms. Planted them, iris, muscari, hyacinth, and freesia in december. The Muscari and Freesia are doing well, and have flowered. The Hyacynith bloomed in Feb (well, half of them) but didn't last long at all. I'm in zone 9 did I plant these corms/bulbs too late? Also I'm in a slightly alkaline soil 7.5. They get tons of light with a SE facing yard 8+ a day. The nitrogen level is low, but good on the phosphate and potasium. Hopefully the iris are going to start blooming soon.
Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks.

In your zone the bulbs need to go thru a cooling phase, did you buy pre cooled? I'm not 100% sure how that works since I don't need to do that here. Maybe someone from your zone can chime in here.

Are your sure the bulbs are still there, do you see any foliage? Maybe critters got to them, here I have to surround my bulbs when planting with chicken wire.

Everything has foliage. It's weird, but the hyacinth seem to be stricken with some sort of blight....some of them are just rotting away after a very short bloom time then the greens grow, then...blah! A couple of things I've noticed growing these in the dirty south 1. The muscari getting more light have sent up two or three flower stalks, the ones in the shade in a container only one. However, the ones in the shade have produced more seed pods. Could have to do with polination. ::shrugs:: 2. The freesia in the back yard with 8+ hours of direct light aren't doing as well as the potted ones getting only about 4 hours....I've read they're originally from South Africa in higher elevation. The ones getting all the light are blooming, but they seem to be sped up. 3. From the last post to now, of the 12 or so Iris I planted, two of them are getting very close to bloom now.

neworleansdude,
I think it has a lot to do with our warm climate. Anytime I've planted bulbs during the fall, they come up in the spring and I may get a few blooms but most of them don't really bloom good until their second season. A friend gave me some irises which I planted in the fall of '08--they didn't bloom at all that spring but they have multiplied and are blooming beautifully right now.

Thanks NatureLover...I'll try to be patient with the bulbs. For some of the Freesia that were in containers, I moved them into larger pots- it was interesting to note they are all totally root now...not a hint of a bulb. I have a a couple dozen muscari seeds that I'll plant soon. They look viable so we'll see what happens. I checked a few of the hyacynith and they still retain their bulb. It's always nice to learn something new. I tended to think that most bulbs were more of a Northern thing. That and for myself I grew herbs and veggies...it was the girlfriend that asked me to start planting more flowers. :)

neworleansdude: I'd be willing to bet that given your location your soil is very warm and wet. Not conducive to some bulbs, as they will rot. In Minnesota my bulbs did great but here in Alabama I can't get tulips to bloom from year to year. The first year is great, and then it goes downhill from there. I may have to try the container idea. That might be a good solution!

You can dig up your tulips and chill them--if they're surviving and not blooming well then it's most likely the lack of winter chill that's causing problems for you. Or you can treat them as annuals and buy new pre-chilled bulbs every year.

JulieQ: the container for the freesia is about 24" diameter and 18" deep. West facing porch. We have 6 growing in there. I've learned they seem okay with some crowding, at least with potting soil and part-sun. As for yer comment...yes, it is warm and wet soil. And I've tested a few of the bulbs by digging them up and generally there is no bulb, just roots. I do understand most of them need 3 or 4 months after the blooms to grow the blubs/corms for next year. Anyone else in zone 7 or higher have advice/antecdotes on this? This site rocks, and yer all good peeps. Glad I found it. :)

I've been out of town; sorry to keep you all waiting. I have had dozens of daffs. I've cut 4 dozen (2 last Monday and 2 dozen today) to bring to my office and share with neighbors. I had 4 yellow and red tulips to bloom and have several poking their heads out.
I am hosting 3 teas (25 ladies and little girls each time) to celebrate spring and have been anxious to get the right date and make sure the tulips would bloom during that time. The teas will be April 25th adn 26th and May 2nd.
As I posted on other threads, I've never grown anything prior to last spring (I put sweet peas out to grow in June ) and I had NEVER planted a bulb. To Dispsydoodle, I just counted what I planted!
I planted:
12 types of tulips, 3 or 4 kinds of daffs, hyacinths, muscaris, anemones, iris and winter aconite. The hyacinths have just shot up, I have some big red tulips that are almost open and the daphs are just crazy.
I have a 28 x 5 ft planting bed and many, many pots in a 500 sq ft area. yes, it's a lot, but the gardening has been therapy for me. It has provided me with great joy. Photos to come! I promise.

Thanks to all of you. You are all so nice and have been a great resource.

Most of mine are blooming right now....

more.....

Beautiful, bluebunn.

and more... have a lovely tea party!

Bluebunn: great photos. Those looked like muscari up front with tulips and daffs on the side? I'm curious how many years have they been there and what is your elevation?

Our elevation is about 1000. The red tulips have been here for about 3 yrs. Every thing else was planted in the fall.

Bluebunn: your photos are awesome- the plants look great not just from a visual point of view but very healthy also. Do you think your higher elevation (we're at sea level here) and cooler temps are better for most bulbs? I wouldn't mind trying to establish a permanent bulb garden (8 by 6 sort of space) yet with a lot a other things I've read it seems many people dig them up after they've flowered and then had another couple of months to store energy. With those three year old tulips do you dig them up and dry and store for a few months or just let them be?

I think the zone difference between New Orleans and TN is more of a factor than the elevation difference. In your zone some bulbs like tulips are going to need to be dug up and chilled every year if you want them to bloom well--if you go with things like freesias that are from warmer areas then you won't have as much extra work.

Neworleans,
I don't dig up my bulbs at all, and I always plant even more in the autumn. Here in Tennesee, if you plant your bulbs 12inches deep, they will come up for about 5 years. Of course, the first year, the bulbs are big and beautiful and just get smaller as the years pass.But the Muscari just get thicker and bigger as the years go by. I planted over 1000 bulbs last fall..... I just dig a big trench and place them in groupings of about 25 to 50, it isn't too much work, and the reward is great!

You might be surprised!! I've always heard that if you get your bulbs in the ground (in the south) before Nov/Dec., they should bloom for you the following spring.
I sure hope you take pics of your tea parties. What a great idea :)
Last year I planted some Dutch iris as late as March and in a month they were blooming. Same with Lily of the Valley. Someone from church sent me home with some of her mother's LOV and in a few days they were blooming. It could also be the fact that she dug them up at just the right moment. My friend is in her 60's and she brought these LOV from Pa about 25+ years ago.
What part of Ga are you from?

Susan

Blubs/corms planted: about 35 Muscari, 40 Freesia, 20 hyacinth, 50 crocus.10 Iris. All planted between Dec. and Jan. This was stuff we got 50% off at Lowes. Most bulbs are of Dutch (Holland) origin. Almost all Muscari were good and I'd say 28 of the 35 flowered at least one stalk. Of the Freesia at least half have bloomed (nice flowers, the red/yellow seem to be doing the best with some soild white and yellows). Hyacinth has been a disapointment. the Iris are just starting to flower now, 3 so far, with another 2 lookin' good. But only 4 of the 50 crocus. However, I've seen stock footage of them in bloom in the snow, so I think those should have been in the ground Sept. Oct. The last month we already have days up to 80f and nights around 60f. I hope this is of use to someone somewhere in or near this zone. Oh, the other interesting note, I've gotten some really good seed off the muscari, so I'm thinking if you have a spot for them (10x10 or so) and let them self seed I can see how they just become more dense and beautiful over the years.

Your Muscari will spread all on its own without seeding. When I first started gardening I planted 25 Muscari bulbs - a few years later I wondered what all the little rocks were in the garden - it was Muscari bulbs I think there were a couple hundred at least.

I'd like to thank everyone for their advice. At the time we bought all the bulbs we didn't know about prechilling...but I don't want to try to force a plant that doesn't agree with the climate so next year I think I'll be more careful in selecting bulbs that work for zones 8-10. It seems most of the Dutch bulbs prefer z 3-7.

Bluebunn: I'll definitley be doing muscari and freesia again.

Peace, yall.

When I started this thread, I had no idea if the 300+ bulbs that I planted in October would bloom. How could little roots like that produce anything so beautiful without sun or water for all of those months. Well....I've been blessed with flowers galore.

For everyone who asked for pictures! We live in McLean, Va (3 miles from the Washington, DC line) and everything I planted in october is at full peak. I prayed over these little bulbs. I have everything and every color. I had 30 women on Sat and 26 on Sunday for a tea party. Here are the pictures. Thank you all for your kinds words, words of wisdom and support. Gina (aka. XGAPeach)

other pictures from this weekend. Middle section of planter bed. purple and fuschia hyacinths, red roses, yellow and red varigated tulips, big reds, others....

more!

they are just beautiful. We were out of town last weekend and when I returned, so many of my tulips had popped open. I cried...my husband knows how I anguished over whether or not anything would actually bloom. I am so surprised and loving the scent of the hyacinth

Bunny with the tulips and daffs. also- the laurel bushes in the pic are not supposed to be evergreen. I was told that they would die each year...but we planted them in oak barrels and buried them 2/3 in the raised planting bed. they stayed green all year and now are in bloom. The fragrance of the bloom is delicious...a lovely sweet smell.

Here's the question...has anyone had tulips grow back after having cut away the foliage after bloom? In other words, not being patient enough to wait for the foliage to die back before cutting?

Looks beautiful! Glad your bulbs came through for you!

As far as the tulip foliage--you don't necessarily need to leave it up the whole time until it dies back all the way, but you do need to leave it up for a while so that the bulb can store energy for next year. Hopefully someone else will know what the minimum time is.