I have had them coming in in dribs and drabs for the past 3 weeks or so but have yet to plant a single ONE!! I have been crazy busy and it seems when not too busy it was rainy or nasty out to plant. I was out there a couple of 40 degree days in the rain getting all the perennials I had in pots in the ground. I am hoping between today and tomorrow I can get my bulbs in. Today is supposed ot be 45 and sunny in the afternoon and I have about an hour I can work with and then tomorrow I have all afternoon after 3:3 and it is supposed to be 53 or something. (31 right now - brrrrr) Am I too late??? I have crocus, starflower, tulips, fritillaria, allium, oxalis and iris harmony
Have I blown it with my bulbs??
You should be fine. For tulips it issuggested to plant October into November. The only one I'm not sure of would be the Oxalis (hardiness factor).
I have planted into February. . . . the first year the bulbs may come up very late. But after that, they are ok. (Unless they rot before you plant them.)
Here we plant bulbs as long as the ground isn't frozen! They don't need to develop good root systems as they store their nutrients in the bulb part. Just scratch in a little bulb fertilizer with the dirt around where you've planted them. I've heard that daffodils protect nearbye bulbs against anything snacking on them.
xxxxx, Carrie
edited for clarification and spelling!
This message was edited Oct 27, 2006 12:31 PM
Thanks - you all have made me feel better! The oxalis are oxalis adenophylla and supposed to be hardy to zone 4 or 5 depending on where you look. I got the allium, frits and a few daffodils in yesterday. Rained all day today - UGH! We're supposed to have some nice weather over the weekend though so I hope to get it done!!
I've had to put off my bulb planting due to rain, too. It seems like whenever we have dry weather (and the soil has dried up some), I've got stuff to do away from home. Keeping my fingers crossed for both of us...
w
Just make sure to keep them cool and dark until you do plant them. The worst possible scenario is that they start sprouting on some warm counter or on top of the fridge before you plant them. Okay, worse would be rotting. LOL But you know what I mean! You should be able to plant them for as long as you can pry up a frozen lid of soil and work what is beneath it. Not like I would know. Ahem.
LOL !
They are hidden in a dark corner of the garage so they will stay asleep :) Thanks!!
Okay, it's a nice day out today here in Ohio. It's supposed to be clear and dry with a balmy high of 60ish. Wanna race?? LOL
Just got mine planted yesterday. We had the same weather woes and I thought I would lose them all...What you can do is to dig up a spot when the weather is good, and cover the pile of dirt with composting weeds,etc. to keep it from freezing, then the next good day you can put the tulips in the spot you dug, and cover with the still loose soil. This is how I did it.
I didn't know you were supposed to keep them in a dark place. I thought the main requirement was a dry place. Thanks for the info.
Sharon
Great minds think alike. I might have had a head start since I didn;t stop first to post =p
Got 175 in today :) It is a perfect day!! I still have about 50 left I think but I ran out of time. Had to get my daughter from dance class and now have to run my son to a BDay party. Hope it is nice tomorrow!!
I want pictures in the spring! (she said sternly.)
My DH doesn't like having to wait for the foliage to ripen in the grass, and where else to put chinoxoda but in the grass? He doesn't enjoy mowing like the guy next door does and it infuriates him that our yard (our shrinking yard) is the last to get mowed in the spring (all because of those grape hyacinths). I guess I'll have to stick it under the bushes? I put lots of pink chinoxoda and coral tulips, daffs and hyacinths in the "Coral Garden" in the back, but blue is the color of the street side! I bought bags and bags of blue chinoxoda!!! Grrrr.
Maybe in the grass in the back? Hm, what we need is a Long Range Plan.
xxxxx, Carrie
I have NO idea how many I planted! I'm afraid if I look, I'll really be worn out. hahahaha I also mowed about 2 acres, pulled a bunch of weeds and dragged some more stuff into the greenhouse. I still have lilies to plant and am potting some.
It's getting dark so I guess I am in for the night. Now I get to shower, make dinner, get four of my six little ones prepped for school tomorrow, move and fill a book case and maybe even clean my desk!
I have a saying here and hope it won't offend the men folk. LOL "NO rest for the breasted!". It seems I am never done! I'd say "No rest for the wicked" but I've been on my very best behavior and Halloween is over here in podunk Lake Lynchburg. :)
Chele, you got the little people Halloween over. Don't you have a big people Halloween in podunk?
Hubby is working seven days a week. :( About the closest thing to Halloween I might get is an orange beer and a candy bar. LOL
It's supposed to hit 70 today!! Will get the last 90 or so bulbs in for sure :)
Wooo hooo! Go Peg go! LOL
I still have lilies to pot and odd and end bulbs to plant. I was doing pretty good then my box from bloomaholic's co-op arrived. LOL
I did clean out a lot of the garden by the pond and got Eremurus, Hyacinths and Lilies put in plus moved some of my pretty big Miscanthus around. There is still an awful lot of grass out there which means I need more gardens. Bwa haha ha ha I need to go find Tom and see if he still has a bunch of cow manure to get rid of. I know just where he can drop it. :)
I got R done!
Cleaned out the vegetable garde, got in the rest of the bulbs and got all (well most) of my hosta markers in their spots. I believe Pegz garden is closed for the winter. AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH....
Bulbmeister is having a bulb sale. LOL
Badseed.....In regard to a comment you made earlier......You should be able to plant them for as long as you can pry up a frozen lid of soil and work what is beneath it. I was just wondering how you do it. Not like I might need to use this bit of information.....but how exactly do you manage to break through that lid of frozen soil so that you can pry it up. Inquiring minds need to know.
Marie
Oh nooooooooooooooooo...I was just thinking how I didn't get enough daffodils or tulips...
LOL Marie! Usually this early in the year, the top inch or two might freeze solid but the ground below it is usually (I can't say always) still workable. If it's possible to slide your shovel under the hard layer of dirt, you can still plant in the loose dirt beneath it. This time of year thaws and freezes are still pretty common. We've not froze yet but have dipped into the 30s a few times. I was still planting bulbs in December of last year and they all bloomed this year. Of course this also means you have to have a bulb that wants to be a couple of inches below the soil if that is what you have to remove to get to friable soil.
Oh boy - that is NOT what I need to hear. I need to hear that October 31 is the LAST day you can plant. Period.
Now who else is having bulb sales now?????......
I don't know. I am trying NOT to look! LOL I need more tulips and daffs for all the new beds I put in. LOL
"Oct. 31 is the last day you can plant, period, in IOWA."
xxx, Carrie
What is the normal growing season for period? I guess it's still open planting season for spring bulbs.
Open season in the rest of the country, you mean. Today was the last chance for residents of Iowa!
xxx, C
Good thing I got mine planted last week! If you get froze out, you can plant bulbs in containers of potting soil. Then you can bring some in the house in early spring, and let some bloom outdoors, and then move them to the garden later.
Thank goodness Carrie LOL. I might need you around to enforce some other rules here, too ;)
Oh, and I thought that I was the only one who had planted bulbs in November and December!
With regard to the above mentioned fritillaria, I think that those may need to get into the ground ASAP because of some drying problems. Has anyone else heard this?
Well heck. I still haven't got mine in, and of course I bought more last week. I was all set to plant today and tomorrow since I am going to be out of town for three weeks starting Friday.
At the moment, I'm typing this with only one eye available since I had a piece of metal removed from my eye today. I'm not supposed to have either of them open, at least til I go back Tuesday for follow-up. Bulbs may just hav to wait til early Dec.
Has anyone done them in containers for outdoors, and if so, what do you do with the bulbs after bloom in the spring? Can you plant them then?
Hopefully I'll be able to read replies with both eyes tomorrow. :(
w
The only way I plant them is in containers. Just make sure to add some perlite to the potting soil you use. And if you want you can replant them after they bloom.
Cool. I think I could manage that without too much trouble. Not that I claim I can pot something up with my eyes closed... But it's good to know that I can still enjoy them and not lose them next year.
Thanks.
w
Winging! Is your eye okay?? That somehow sounds very unfun and painful! Take care of yourself.
According to the doc, it's 50% healed already. I don't have to wear a patch. Still a ways to go to get to "normal".
I have no idea how it happened. It was actually in there for a couple of months, maybe more. It never hurt--just felt like there was something in my eye from time to time--not even all the time. I finally "got around to" making an appt. and lo and behold, he said this was an emergency. It had sort of scarred over so it was harder to remove.
So, I'm way better today which means travel is probably still on. If it would stop raining, maybe I could get some bulbs in.
Thanks for asking,
w
I'm so glad to hear it turned out okay. Did they treat you like you were nuts for not coming in sooner? I was walking around with a detached retina and didn't know it. I went for an eye exam (for glasses and contacts) then emergency surgery, found out I was pregnant on the operating table then spent 2 weeks face down with a gas bubble in my eye. ROTFLOL The terror of the deal did make me appreciate my eye sight so much more!
It is really amazing how quickly the human body can repair itself! I think the eyes and the mouth are the quickest to heal.
It's cold and drizzling here too. :( I'd so much rather be outside than doing laundry. LOL
I have all my lilies & spring bulbs in--for the minute! I like to score a few more daffodils, tulips & miscellaneous spring bulbs as the local stores & nurseries close them out. Last November 18 found me kneeling in the lobby of Walmart squeezing bulb bags selling for 50 cents. I ended up adding several Gladiator allium, Mediterranean Bells and 10 bulb bags of daffodils to my gardens--over 200 bulbs for less than $20!
Who can have too many spring bulbs? I'll still be planting them in December if I get a good buy.
OK then - I am officially still in the market for daffodils, tulips and anything that looks good!!
Sure--come to the Iowa Round up here in CR & I'll try to have some in bloom!
I am not planting another bulb and still have a box full of mixed daffs and tulips (I think). Anyone want them for postage?