I'm about to plant tulips - a mix of early, mid and late blooming varieties in a long flower bed in NY - for the first time in many years. How many inches apart should they be planted? How far down?

I remember last time I planted them I used generous amounts of bone meal and those tulips came up for many years.

TreeSong, welcome back to the tulip planting world!! I plant a lot of tulps, and here in Nova Scotia and Holland, the suggested depth is 6" unless it is really warm where you are, in which case they should be planted deeper to keep them cool. The space between does not matter, as close as you want them. Send us a pic! Cheers!

They look much nicer planted close together.....

Agreed, though it may shorten the number of years they last. How many inches apart would you suggest?

I would say 3".....

Species tulips you can get away with 3x3; standard type tulips you will not be doing the tulips or yourself a favor with less than 4x6 .
Depending on size of bulb , deeper is better, i.e. four by six will work but six by eight will make for better repeat blooms and six by 10 is as good as it gets.

Bone meal is fine, I still use it as I inherited pounds from my aunt, but dedicated Tulip fertilizers nowadays is better as a large portion of bone-meal just sits there and does nothing but dedicated fertilizer does what it is supposed to do.

Thank you RobinD and RPR. @RPR, when you write 6 x 10, do you mean planted 6 inches apart in one direction, say sideways, and 10 inches apart in the other direction, say front to back? And how many inches deep do you recommend?

What are species tulips and how do they differ from standard tulips? The only distinction I ever followed before was mixing early-blooming, mid-blooming and late-blooming varieties, which provided at least 7-8 weeks of blooming. Is there anything you would change in spacing when mixing early, mid and late blooming varieties?

TreeSong said:Thank you RobinD and RPR. @RPR, when you write 6 x 10, do you mean planted 6 inches apart in one direction, say sideways, and 10 inches apart in the other direction, say front to back? And how many inches deep do you recommend?

What are species tulips and how do they differ from standard tulips? The only distinction I ever followed before was mixing early-blooming, mid-blooming and late-blooming varieties, which provided at least 7-8 weeks of blooming. Is there anything you would change in spacing when mixing early, mid and late blooming varieties?

Six inches apart, square and Ten inches deep.

Species tulips:

Dengarden"Gardening"Flower
Species Tulips (Botanical Tulips)
Updated on January 10, 2017
chayes7 moreContact Author

Species Tulips
The Wild Bunch
Species Tulips are the uncut diamonds of Tulips. Un-hybridized and uncultivated, many have a raw beauty and a tough constitution. Most are small. Some are tiny. Many, given the right conditions, will naturalize freely, just as they do in their native habitats in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Despite this, they are only now becoming widely available to gardeners - although they have long been coveted by collectors and enthusiasts, who tend to favor them over hybrids.

Unlike other Tulip Groups, Species Tulips are not defined by their flowering times, which may be anytime between February and May.

Species Tulip are also sometimes called Botanical Tulips.

Tips for Growing Species Tulips
In the wild, many of these Tulips are kept dry as a bone in summer. Make sure your soil is well-drained. Add plenty of sharp grit if necessary.
For a natural look, try scattering bulbs and planting them where they fall.
As with other tulips, leave dying foliage for at least six weeks after flowering.
To encourage naturalizing (spreading) don't deadhead the flowers.
Many Species tulips will naturalize in Southern US states such as Texas, where winters are too mild for hybridized tulips. Successful varieties include Tulipa clusiana (Lady Tulip), Tulipa praecod (Fire tulip), Tulipa saxatilis (Cretan Tulip), Tulipa sylvestris (Florentine Tulip) and Tulipa orphanidea (Greek Tulip).
Tulipa Praestans Unicum

Early four by six
Medium five by six
Late six by eight

Humilis Violacea Violet-Red Species tulips

One Autumn a lady had me plant tulip bulbs. The directions specified to plant them seven inches deep. The next May they had very tall stems and splendid red flowers.

I have tons of tulips here. Planted them every Fall for many years. Now for many, many years I no longer plant but most come up year after year. So I have a garden full of tulips.

Honestly my tulips are planted any where form 6 to 10 inches deep. Most I simply dug a big trench. Set the bulbs and refilled.,

I've had good luck planting tulips with this:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Am...

I have used Bulb Tone for a fertilizer.

Tulips are more reliable on the south side of my garage....some are blooming now....others in the perennial beds are just barely up......

Now that this thread popped up, thought I'd update - our bulbs are coming in great and are a cheery addition before the perennial pollinator flowers are grown in more by later spring. We mixed early, mid and late-season bulbs, crocus, hyacinth, daffodils, tulips and irises. We planted them mostly by opening trenches and then placed them in spots by bloom time and height, quite densely. Used Espoma Bulb Tone. I'll note that the tulips we planted 2-3 years ago bloomed earlier this year than the ones we planted last fall, likely because the earlier planted ones are established and recharged with plenty of sun the last two summers (we leave all the leaves up to recharge and plant Wave Petunias between them to keep the area looking nice all summer through fall).

Sounds like you have a lovely spring garden!

Thank you, thanks to people in this forum and the best local gardener we know at an area nursery. Only surprise we got was some peach tulips popping up now - but we never bought peach tulips. I'll bet that happens fairly often. By the way, a great tip - planting daffodils among your tulips naturally protects them from squirrels - squirrels will often dig up and chew or eat tulips, but can't stand daffodils, so won't dig them up if there are daffodils among them. Great tip from the gardener. No pepper or chemical repellents needed.

RpR said: Six inches apart, square and Ten inches deep.

Species tulips:

Dengarden"Gardening"Flower
Species Tulips (Botanical Tulips)
Updated on January 10, 2017
chayes7 moreContact Author

Species Tulips
The Wild Bunch
Species Tulips are the uncut diamonds of Tulips. Un-hybridized and uncultivated, many have a raw beauty and a tough constitution. Most are small. Some are tiny. Many, given the right conditions, will naturalize freely, just as they do in their native habitats in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Despite this, they are only now becoming widely available to gardeners - although they have long been coveted by collectors and enthusiasts, who tend to favor them over hybrids.

Unlike other Tulip Groups, Species Tulips are not defined by their flowering times, which may be anytime between February and May.

Species Tulip are also sometimes called Botanical Tulips.

Tips for Growing Species Tulips
In the wild, many of these Tulips are kept dry as a bone in summer. Make sure your soil is well-drained. Add plenty of sharp grit if necessary.
For a natural look, try scattering bulbs and planting them where they fall.
As with other tulips, leave dying foliage for at least six weeks after flowering.
To encourage naturalizing (spreading) don't deadhead the flowers.
Many Species tulips will naturalize in Southern US states such as Texas, where winters are too mild for hybridized tulips. Successful varieties include Tulipa clusiana (Lady Tulip), Tulipa praecod (Fire tulip), Tulipa saxatilis (Cretan Tulip), Tulipa sylvestris (Florentine Tulip) and Tulipa orphanidea (Greek Tulip).
Tulipa Praestans Unicum

Early four by six
Medium five by six
Late six by eight

There are beautiful red Species Tulips that I planted for my grandmother +25 years ago that come up every year. They are a bit shorter and a bit smaller-flowered than the other tulips I've planted but they are beautiful. They even keep pushing up among taller tulips. Really like them.

My tulips are blooming, & it looks like it was a good winter for them....

Is it too late to put some bulbs in ? And if so..., anyone know of a place in Mercer Co, NJ, that has a nice select?