When do I dig up and separate my tulip bulbs?

Question

We are in growing zone 3 in Canada.

Answer 1

In the fall when you plant the rest of your bulbs or do the end of the year maintenance

Answer 2

Tulips are biennial so you really only need to do it every two years. The mother tulip will no longer bloom after the second year so at that point you should remove the tulip and replant the offspring. Fall is the best time to do this because the foliage of the tulip needs to soak up all the sun it can get before dying back for the winter.

Answer 3

I'd dig them up when they have grown to the max and died down, this allows them to build up nutrients and new flower buds inside the bulbs - ready for next year.

Plant in November time, when the ground is not frozen etc. Add some sharp sand to the hole, if the ground is waterlogged, etc. to prevent rot. Later planting is good, much later than narcissus etc, which need to start rooting in early fall.

You can leave them all year, if the soil will not rot them. Divide occasionally, every few years. Add some compost mulch to improve the soil.

Answer 4

You can do it the moment the flowers fade, but leave on the leaves etc. so they can replenish the bulbs, This is assuming you intend for the bulbs to naturalize. If you need to remove the bulbs because of severe winters, you do so after the leaves have become brown. Place bulbs in sawdust in an open box for air circulation and plant again in November or December.

Answer 5

I wouldn't do it until the leaves have turned yellow. Then, the bulbs are done getting the nutrients out of them.

Personally, I leave my bulbs in year round. The only problem with that is I forget where they are. :) I've had some of my other perennial plants grow up around them.

I'm in zone 5-6 in Ohio.

Answer 6

Wait until the tops die out and you can dig them and replant them anytime up until frost.

Answer 7

In the fall, when it start cooling down.