What Should Be Done With Tulips In A Pot Once They Bloom?

After the vibrant display of blooms, potted tulips need specific care to ensure future growth. To maintain their health post-bloom and prepare them for successful re-flowering, resist the temptation to snap off the flower heads with your fingers or pinch off the stem. A balanced bulb fertilizer can provide an extra boost of nutrients, focusing on low nitrogen content.

If you’ve grown tulips in spring flower beds and they’ve started to go over, deadhead them by cutting off the flower stems, adding fertilizer, and keeping them in sunlight. Once the petals have faded, prepare potted tulips for planting outdoors by keeping plants indoors, ideally in an east- or south location.

To encourage tulips to bloom again next year, remove the seed heads once the blooms have faded, allow the foliage to die back naturally, and dig up the bulbs about 6 weeks after blooming. Discard the tulips after they bloom and have the pleasure of choosing fresh bulbs each fall. Most bulbs can be forced through a cool resting cycle, which can be done by placing them in a brown paper bag in the vegetable bin of your fridge for 8-10 weeks. Keep them in a sunny area and keep the soil moist but not wet.

After the bulb goes dormant, remove it from the potting soil completely, and place them, pot, and all, in a cool, mostly dry location. A basement or attached garage works well. Lay the healthy bulbs out to dry, then place them in labeled trays, paper bags, or nets, where they’re dry, sheltered from sunlight. If you live in Hardiness Zones 3-8, the bulbs can be replanted in your outdoor garden in fall, planting between late September and November.