Dealing with bulbs?

Question

I live in Ontario, Canada. I have some bulbs that I would like to plant (Gladiolous & lillies). I heard somewhere that you need to dig them up before it gets too cold outside. Is this true? If so, are there any alternatives to doing this? I don't have anywhere indoors that I could put a whole garden of bulbs. What do I need to know about growing bulbs in this kind of climate?

Answer 1

As everyone else said your lilies should be fine staying in the ground, and your Glads will probably have to be dug up.

Glad storage during the winter isn't that hard. You don't have to store a whole garden, only the bulbs which are pretty small. You can fit about 25 Glad bulbs in a normal sized paper bag.

Wait about a month and a half after the Glads finish blooming to dig them up, and then dig them up when the ground is dry.

Cut off the stock about a inch and half above the bulb. (Called a corn, cutting off the rest of plant means storage is pretty easy.) Store Glads in a light well ventilated place for a couple of weeks. (This lets them dry, so they don't rot over the winter in storage) (I find the top of my fridge is an excellent spot to do this)

Once dry there is one more step for healthy Glads. Break apart the old bulb part of the glad, from the new healthy bulb growing on top of it. It should make a clean break. The old part will be dry and will produce an even scar across the bottom of the new Glad, there will also be new little bulbs attached to the glads that you can separate.

Store your Glads in a paper bag and keep in a cool, dark, dry, well ventilated place during the winter. (Your storage room)

I've included a link that goes into Glad care in way more detail.

Of Course, if this all sounds like too much work, why not just put an extra heavy layer of mulch over the Glad part of your garden and hope that it insulates it enough? (Probably won't, but if a plant needs too much care, it's not worth keeping anyways right?)

Answer 2

The question is not what did the bulbs do before we came along, but can I grow bulbs originating from Asia, Africa, Turkey etc, in an area where deep ground frosts are normal ? If your ground freezes rock hard you will lose Gladiolus for certain, and Lilium most likely. If you have a sunny aspect where the ground does not freeze, you may get away with leaving them in the ground. You know Ontario better than me, if Huskies shiver in your part of the world, grow bulbs in pots. Leave them to die back naturally after flowering, and before first frost, place pots in garage/shed/lean-to. Keep them DRY, and in Spring re-pot them. The Lily `Henryii`is a particularly hardy bulb, the only one that I leave in position (S E. England) through any weather. Some of the hybrid lilies are more sensitive. Although with global warming , we rarely see snow or deep freezes. Good luck.

Answer 3

Your lilies will probably be OK, depending on what part of Ontario you live in. They're good down to Zone 4, I believe.

The gladiolas are tender, only good to about Zone 8, 7 in a stretch. I believe Ontario only goes as high as 5, so you will probably need to dig up the gladiolas, or protect them somehow.

As the other person said, tulips, daffodils, crocus, hyacinths, and most other bulbs are cold-hardy.

Answer 4

You don't have to dig them up in fall. (What did all the bulbs do in winter before humans came along?) They are hardy. Lived in Northern PA for years, crocus were always first to peek through the snow followed by narcissus, tulips, iris, lillies...have fun

Answer 5

You might want to also plant some iris. They are pretty hardy in zone 5 winters where I live.

Answer 6

Glads, dig up. Lilies leave in