My Spring Bulbs Wont Bloom - Why?
You can hear the wailing from here. "Why aren't my bulbs blooming?" "There are a lot of leaves on them but not a single flower." The overall cause of a bulb not producing a bloom is either the bud wasn't formed or it was damaged in some way. No bud equals no flower. Here's why your bud might have been killed: There wasn't enough sunlight last summer or you planted your bulbs in too shady an area. For the most part, spring blooming bulbs want full sunshine for at least six hours a day. If you do not give them enough sunshine, they may live but not have enough energy to produce a flower bud. You might have cut off the foliage last year before it yellowed naturally. If you cut off the foliage before it yellows, the bulb will not be able to get enough sunlight to produce a bud. Remember Doug Green's number one rule for growing bulbs, "Grow the foliage, the flower will take care of itself." You might have tied up the foliage over top of the bulb to give yourself room to plant annuals. This is an old trick that won't go away but is still not recommended for growing good bulb leaves. (Do you think you'd grow very well if you had to hold your arms over your head all the time?) You might have planted them too early last fall. Once the bulb had rooted and the ground was still warm, it might have started to produce a flower bud. Once that bud emerges, it either lives or dies on the soil temperature. An emerged bud that hits frozen or too-cold soil is going to die and this means there won't be another bud for the following spring. Perhaps you overfed or overwatered those bulbs. Overwatering bulbs will most often kill them because they will rot (think of leaving an onion in a glass of water). Spring flowering bulbs have developed in areas where there is winter-cold and spring-rains but summer drought. When you water your garden in the summer to keep the annuals and perennials happy, you are making your bulbs unhappy. Too much water and the bulbs will disappear taking their flowers with them. Perhaps the bulbs have grown up magnificently and multiplied. If so, they might simply require dividing to produce flowers again. This is not likely in a normal garden setting but possible. You can tell if there are scads of leaves all coming from the same small area if the bulbs are too crowded. You want to know if it is a disease. The odds are that it is not. Bulb diseases either disfigure flowers or kill the bulbs. None just kill off the flower bud. The odds are it is a cultural thing and not a disease. You just have to figure out what you need to give the bulb to make it happy. You can do this at Doug Green's flower-garden-bulbs.com website Remember, grow those leaves to make the flowers bloom. copyright Douglas Green 2005 Doug Green is an award winning garden writer with over 30 years experience in the horticultural industry. His bulb website is at http://www.flower-garden-bulbs.com and his garden blog is at http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com
Related News
Eagle Scouts, Girl Scouts, gardening scouts - DavidsonNews.net
Eagle Scouts, Girl Scouts, gardening scoutsDavidsonNews.net, NC -Nov 20, 2008They noticed that the landscaping around the new buildings appeared a bit sparse and knew the view from their third floor balcony could be improved. ... |
Gardening Calendar, updated Nov 19 - TCPalm
Gardening Calendar, updated Nov 19TCPalm, FL -Nov 19, 2008McKee Botanical Garden, Vero Beach, 6-8 pm, Dec. 18-21. $3.50-$6. (772) 794-0601. "Florida Native Landscaping": University of Florida/IFAS Indian River ... |
Landscape company lands coveted Bog Oak accolade - Belfast Telegraph
Landscape company lands coveted Bog Oak accoladeBelfast Telegraph, United Kingdom -Nov 10, 2008By Margaret Canning A Belfast landscape gardening business has won a coveted award for its work on a private garden. Cameron Landscapes won the Bog Oak ... |
Garden Fair set - Haleakala Times
Garden Fair setHaleakala Times, HI -Oct 29, 2008Experts will be available to answer landscaping, gardening and tree questions. There will be booths representing the landscape industry, tree-friendly ... |
Seabrook on ... Solidarity during tough times - Horticulture Week
Seabrook on ... Solidarity during tough timesHorticulture Week, UK -10 hours agoWhen we lose thousands of banking and other professional jobs, the demand for garden design and domestic landscaping work will inevitably contract. ... |
Leaving a landscaped legacy - Waukegan News Sun
Leaving a landscaped legacyWaukegan News Sun, IL -Nov 20, 2008The gardening experience was new for student Scott Dale, 17. "It would be sweet coming in right after spring break. I think it's good," Dale said. ... |
6 Fort Worth garden shops built their way up on a dream - Dallas Morning News
Garden sector lures City workers as recession hits financial firms - Horticulture Week
Master Gardeners program growing in area - Branson Daily News
Master Gardeners program growing in areaBranson Daily News, United States -Nov 20, 2008By attending 30 hours of classes that deal with subjects on ornamentals, landscaping, turf management and vegetable production, these gardeners will join a ... |
Everything's rosy for youngsters learning gardening skills - The Star
|
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
A Rose is a Rose?
There are many varied definitions of what each color of rose symbolizes. Florists and floral experts alike will agree that flowers hold the meaning we give them and the feeling with which they are given.
The Importance of Garden Decor
The Quest for Significance
Black Walnut Trees Produce A Natural Insecticide
The black walnut tree manufactures a substance that is a
natural insecticide according to experts at the Texas State
University in Austin.
How to Water Your Houseplants Wisely
Over watering ranks first in causes of houseplant demise because
it causes roots to rot. Most plants are tough so they can
recover from under watering with only the loss of a few leaves
-- unless you wait too long and pass the point of no return.
Catch a Leprechaun in Your Garden
There is no mention to be found of female leprechauns in traditional Irish legend, so as to how they came to be .. your guess is as good as mine.
Wooden You Like to Know? A Primer to Wood Outdoor Furnishings
To many people, wood is the quintessential building material for furniture, both indoor and out. There's a wooden furniture form to suit every budget and décor -- from rustic twig loveseats to classis cedar Adirondack chairs to sophisticated teak tables and benches.
A Couple of Good Places to Buy Lawnmowers
After much searching and deliberation, I finally bought a lawnmower of the Internet. This is not the sort of item that I would normally buy on the web, but am happy that I did so.
Science Cant Explain Everything!
You will know that if you have spent at least some time reflecting on the world around you, some things cannot be explained in purely scientific terms. Armies of scientists and researchers swarm in labs around the world trying to take the mystery out of every bit of wonder we witness.
How to Care for Your Outdoor Water Fountains
Garden lovers around the world love putting fountains among their flowers, plants, bushes and shrubs. And with the Christmas season upon us in the U.S., many garden lovers may get their very first fountain as a gift this year.
Gallica Roses
Gallica roses are a case in point. While the popularity of Old Roses waxes and wanes as each new generation discovers them and then seeks something new, the best of them carry on regardless.Rosa gallica, also known as the French Rose or Provins Rose, is a species that grows wild from southern and central Europe to the Caucasus. Because it readily produces sports, has a tendency towards double flowers, and may have hybridised naturally with other species, it is likely that the earliest European garden roses were forms of Rosa gallica.
How To Prune Your Roses For Stunning Results
Pruning and deadheading are essential to proper rose care. Alas, there are nearly as many opinions about how and when to prune as there are roses in need of pruning.
Mulch Your Spring Bulbs In The Fall For A Beautiful Spring Display
Flower bulbs need a good, long, winters sleep. Like some people we know, if they wake up before they are fully rested, they get kind of cranky, and then they don't bloom well at all.
Garden Hot Tubs
Imagine starting your morning with a saunter out the back door to enjoy a cup of coffee in your garden hot tub, or relaxing just before bed with a lazy soak in your backyard hot tub under the stars. More and more homeowners are taking the plunge (pardon the pun!) and installing a hot tub in their backyard or garden. If it all sounds tempting to you, here are a few things to consider when deciding where and whether to put a hot tub in YOUR backyard.
The Home Garden
The garden should be near the house and away from trees. If it's some distance away from the house, it will not be as well looked after, nor will most use be made of vegetables grown. Vegetables near trees cannot get full sunshine; even more important, tree roots will rob them of water and fertilizer they need to do their best.
Marjoram: The Herb of Happiness
Called the "herb of happiness," Origanum majorana, commonly known as sweet marjoram or knotted marjoram, is an herbal symbol of peace and well-being. Marjoram is grown as an annual in the colder parts of the world but is perennial in warmer regions. To keep it growing as a perennial, bring it indoors for the winter. Marjoram may be grown as a houseplant and as it has a tendency to trail when grown indoors, it makes a nice hanging basket. Marjoram has small, grey-green, oval-shaped leaves that are velvety to the touch. Tiny white or pink flowers, reddish stems, and the grey-green colour of the leaves make marjoram an attractive border plant.
Fall Garden Chores for Spring Flowering Bulbs
As the school busses begin to rumble down the road again we are reminded that the gardening season is drawing to a close. For the gardener with an eye toward next spring, however, the season still promises plenty to be done in preparation of a showy spring to come. Early fall is the time when we should be planting our bulbs.
Plan Before Buying Rose Bushes
So, you have decided to plant rose bushes in your yard or on your patio, porch or balcony. Now all you have to do is go out and buy some bushes and plant them. Right? Wrong!!
Theme Gardens
Flower gardens are for enjoyment. They provide you with visual beauty, the joy of working with soil and plants, and the pride of showing others what you have created. As a gardener, one is always experimenting and learning anew what delights a flower garden may bring forth. This enjoyment can be intensified by creating your garden, or a room within the garden, with a theme.
A Compost Primer
Most gardeners and landscapers will agree almost unanimously that the single best thing you can do for your lawn is to add compost. Good, organic compost can remedy almost any problem you have with your soil. If you soil is too acidic, adding compost will help neutralize it and bring it back to a proper pH level. If your soil is too alkaline, ditto! Adding compost will help balance the alkalinity in the soil. If you live in an area with a lot of heavy clay, adding compost will help loosen and aerate the soil. If you live in a coastal or southern area with a lot of sand, adding compost will help bind it together. Soil lacking nutrients? Add compost to add new life to overworked soil.
How to Plant Tulips
Quality Dutch tulip bulbs are easy to come by and fairly inexpensive to purchase. You can get them through a mail order catalogue or a reputable green house. It is becoming increasingly popular to buy flower bulbs from online nurseries. The downfall to buying bulbs online is that you cannot inspect the bulbs prior to purchase. The highest quality of bulbs, especially tulips, comes from Holland.
|
