Hi everyone,

After about 4 years of beautiful narcissus and tulip blooms, this last spring, things didn't look so good. I had some bud-blast with some of the narcissus, and only some of my tulips bloomed despite my lifting them and replanting in the fall.

With the help of members here, I recently IDed the presence of at least two bulb flies. After reading up on them, I decided to dig up all the bulbs in the affected area, examine them, and get rid of any that seem damaged or compromised in any way. I also ordered new bulbs from a recommended, reliable seller.

I'm going through the bulbs I lifted and inspecting them, one by one. Some just don't look good so I'm throwing them out even though they're not mushy. So here's where I need your help.

First, is it okay to remove the skin? Will the bulbs I keep survive and do well when replanted if I remove their skins now?

Second, will bulb-fly eggs survive in the soil and infect any bulbs I plant this fall?

And third, I need opinions on the keepability of these bulbs. Would you keep and replant any of them, or would you throw them out just to be safe?

Sorry about the quality of the photos, they're the best I can do with what I have.

Bulb 01:



Bulb 02:



Bulb 03:



Bulb 04:



Thanks.

Hi Jo
Sorry about your bulbs.
Here's my 2 cents worth of experience with tulips.
I grew Darwin tulips, but noticed after the third year the blooms diminished until about the fifth year, no blooms just foliage. I did a little research and realized specie tulips & tarda tulips should fit my expectations better. I wasn't dealing with insect or disease problems, sorry I cannot address that.
Since planting, my specie tulips have tripled in cluster size. The Darwins never multiplied.
I order from Brent & Becky's, also Easy To Grow Bulbs.
These are specie tulips (below)

These are Tarda (below)

Thank you Kathy. I considered overcrowding, but I have two nearby patches of daffs that have multiplied in number and they were prolific bloomers. They are only about 1 to 2 feet away from the sad ones.

My most recent order is from Brent and Becky's! I can't wait to receive them.

If the multiplying daffs and the sad daffs are different varieties, then that is the most likely reason. Just like people, different genetics mean different susceptibilities and resistances.

Hybrid tulips (even the old Darwins) just don't do well outside where summer soil is moist. If you are digging them after they go dormant, they still need a warm dry period to develop correctly. Keep them warm for 2-3 months, and then plant them in the fall or put them in the fridge.

Or, plant them outside where they get what they need: south side of the house, full sun, under the eve where they will hardly get any natural summer rainfall.

Rick, so does that mean that the sad ones might be more attractive or susceptible to bulb fly eggs and larvae?

You've described exactly what I intend to do with the ones I lifted. I just don't know if I should keep the ones with the spots or not. Any thoughts on that?

Well I don't know much about the narcissus fly, but I don't think they go after tulips. So the spots on the tulip bulbs look like just bruises. You'll always have some, but yes, you do hope for as little as possible. I think they are just fine. Oh, and forgot to say that you do want to try to keep the skins on the bulbs. They help protect the live part of the bulb from excess moisture and mechanical damage, like bruising.

Leftwood said:Well I don't know much about the narcissus fly, but I don't think they go after tulips. So the spots on the tulip bulbs look like just bruises. You'll always have some, but yes, you do hope for as little as possible. I think they are just fine. Oh, and forgot to say that you do want to try to keep the skins on the bulbs. They help protect the live part of the bulb from excess moisture and mechanical damage, like bruising.

Thanks Rick. They could very well be bruises as I don't know how to dig them up without hitting them from time to time. I'll try to leave the skins on those that still have it, and definitely keep it in mind for the future.

Unfortunately, according to this site, the @#$% fly does go for tulips, and lilies and other bulbs too. https://www.gardeningknowhow.c...

What I really wish I could find is information about where to find the bulb fly when it's not laying eggs. Then I could know where to hunt it with my trusty jar of soapy water in hand. Not finding anything online though.

Okay, so I'm keeping those bulbs in the pictures, and I'll take a good look at them before planting in the fall. Thanks for the info!

I've hardly even seen a tulip bulb that was not bruised or blemished in a similar manner. I think you might find that if you inspect them right out of the ground, they will be there. I didn't mean it was your fault.

Be sure to read sites like you mention with a careful eye. Simpler things like "how to grow" are fine, but more technical stuff need to be read from more technical sources. (Probably why that article was not very specific.) When gardeners write when they have no background in plant sciences, they don't have a base for critical thinking beyond logic. Sometimes stuff is unconsciously (or consciously) assumed as they rewrite what they think they learned from wherever they picked up the information.

It doesn't look like your answer is what you hoped for:
http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/GARDE...

Excellent Rick, thanks so much. That site includes the missing info., exactly what I was looking for...and searched for with no results.

Very appreciated!

Forgot about this:

joannakat said:Rick, so does that mean that the sad ones might be more attractive or susceptible to bulb fly eggs and larvae?

Yes. Also, plants in trouble for other reasons tend to be more attractive to bugs (and disease). But take away the more attractive one, and they might go after the healthier one, because that's all that's there for them. I wonder if you can catch the flies on the red or yellow sticky balls that they hang in fruit trees....

Thanks Rick, I've been considering those balls but don't they also catch beneficials?

Sorry, I don't know. Maybe so?

I've used sticky balls, yellow in color, near my Asian Pear trees. Jo, I think you may want to investigate what color to use, as to which insect to trap. I rarely trapped beneficials in my yellow traps by the pear trees.

THanks Kathy, I didn't know color would have that affect!

Jo, I learned a strategy from my research on potato cropping.
I discovered which insects damage area potato crops. I patrolled my crop the first year, saving insect samples & identifying. I spoke to & listened to local farmers about their strategy, and finally, learned about the insect life cycle. Consecutive years, I have planted my crop after insect egg laying stage & hatch (moon phases are a key factor). For my potato crop, a delayed planting had no affect on yield.
Could you apply some of these ideas to your tulip crop? I don't know, but I am happy to share these ideas, from 28 years of testing & research using 100 different potato varieties, with you.

Wow, Kathy, that is some amazing information and a lot of work and thought obviously went into it.

With tulips, daffodils and other related bulbs that the bulb fly lays eggs on, the natural coordination and symbiosis is pure artwork.

The bulbs are planted in the fall, and cool in the ground throughout the winter. During this time, the larvae that have hatched from the previous spring's eggs are munching on the bulbs while in the ground. The flowers are supposed to come up in the spring and if they are healthy, they will bloom beautifully. At this time, the larvae make their way above ground. As mature bulb flies (I think I read they're a type of hoverfly), they hover among the leaves and lay an egg that falls to the proper place. When the egg hatches, the larvae will wiggle its way down to the bulb and the cycle begins again.

Special bulbs that have been properly cooled can be planted in the spring, and for the first season, will bloom in that same spring-to-summer, depending on the type of bulb. Unfortunately, if I'm understanding everything correctly, this creates the same situation where the bulb fly can hover, and lay its eggs.

I hope I'm getting all this right! If someone wants to chime in and correct me on anything, please do.

Kathy, if your experience sees a preventative measure I can take that I'm not seeing, I would be so, so happy to hear about it! Right now, the only thing I've come upon is to watch for the flies, try to dunk them into a jar of soapy water, and to dig up and inspect my bulbs each year which I'm loathe to do.

I guess another option is to plant my new, healthy bulbs this fall and watch to see which bloom well. If there are some that don't, I'll dig them all up to inspect. If not, then, well, I guess I'll just enjoy them!

Here's one way I enjoy them:

Beautiful !

Aw, thanks! It is when they bloom as they're supposed to, but it's really sad when they have problems. I feel like they're my grandchildren so if they're ill, I have to protect and treat them!

Okay, all taken care of and packed and put to bed until the fall. They're enjoying the basement. Thank you, everyone, for all the help.