In many in the flower garden among many plants you can find a tulip. Not every grower knows how to store the bulbs of this representative of the flora correctly. To many, this process seems complicated, but even a novice gardener can master this science.
When to dig up tulips?
Almost all varieties of tulips need to be dug up annually. Then you can count on getting large bulbs. Timely culling of diseased material is carried out. For two years, without digging, you can only grow a baby tulip. As soon as the leaves of the plant turn yellow by 2/3 of their length, they begin to release it from the ground. In a well-ripened bulb, the scales turn light brown. This applies to almost all varieties. Before thinking about how to store tulip bulbs, you should clean them in a timely manner. Late or, conversely, early digging will degrade the quality of the material.
Dug up a tulip. How to store bulbs?
Tulips are dug for storage by variety, starting with the earlier ones. Mainthe task of the grower is to prevent the development of diseases that affect these flowers. How to store the bulbs is of great importance in this case. At the slightest
the formation of a focus of disease on them, they must be culled. After digging, you should determine where to store the tulip bulbs. It is better to use boxes with a mesh bottom for this, scattering them into grades in 2-3 layers. It is not worth pouring more, because this way the bulbs quickly rot, mold forms on them. The boxes are placed under a canopy for 1-2 days to dry the material. Bulb nests easily disintegrate, roots, stems and scales must be removed from them, after which they are etched for half an hour in a solution of potassium permanganate. Sometimes the digging of tulips is carried out in wet weather. In this case, the bulbs should be thoroughly washed in running water, pickled, then laid out in one layer and dried in a warm room.
How to care for tulip bulbs?
Sorting is carried out in July. The bulbs are dried for 4 weeks with good ventilation and a temperature of + 23-25 ° C. In August, this figure should be reduced to + 20 ° C, and a month later by another 3 degrees. This determines what quality the tulip will be, how to store the bulbs in the future. Temperature control is extremely important. It is during the storage period that the replacement and daughter bulbs, the peduncle and the flower itself are formed inside them. In case of violation of the temperature regime, in most cases during flowering, forcing occurs."blind" button. Knowing when to dig up a tulip, how to store the bulbs, are the most important ingredients for successfully cultivating them in the garden. If they are sent to winter storage for spring forcing, it is important to choose the right place. The room should not be too humid (mold may appear). But both excessive dryness and high temperatures adversely affect the bulbs. In a hot room, tulips are very poorly stored, they dry out. Some varieties of these flowers lie well on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, but this is an extreme case.
