What to do with Tulip leaves now that they have bloomed?

Can you cut them back to the ground?

What to do with Tulip leaves now that they have bloomed?
Let them die back normally, this allows the bulbs to gain the nutrition they need. Leave the bulbs in the ground for next year. You can plant annuals over where the tulips were, even before the leaves are completely gone.
Reply:You can cut them back, but because the leaves absorb sunlight, if you cut them off too soon, the bulb will not have much energy stored to make a bloom next year, so maybe you can wait until they start to die back on their own.
Reply:Yes, I do, the bulbs are in the ground and will come up next year.
Reply:Seed production takes food away from the developing bulbs, so it's important to remove faded flowers before they produce seed.





Leaves, however, must remain on the plants until they turn yellow. This yellowing is not attractive but it is a sign that the foliage has fully matured and has manufactured enough food to build a bulb that's strong enough to bloom again next year.





You can hide yellowing leaves by setting out flowering annuals among the bulb plants in late May. Choose annuals that need minimal watering, such as marigolds, vinca, or moss roses. Keeping the soil too moist all summer can weaken the dormant bulbs.





To encourage strong bulb development, fertilize them soon after bulb foliage emerges in spring, and again one month later. Use specially formulated bulb food, not just bone meal.





If your flowers diminish from year to year, which is not unusual in my climate, which is southern Ontario, Canada, dig the bulbs once foliage matures and save only the largest ones. Plant them, along with new bulbs, next Fall .
Reply:If the tulips are in a flower bed and you wish to keep them for next year, break off the spent flowers. This will help the bulb to form a flower for next year instead of developing a seed pod which saps its energy. Let the leaves naturally die back in the next several days, or just go ahead and add soil and plant on top of them.


If the bulbs are in a container, carefully dig them out, place them in a bag with some dry soil or peat moss and store them away in a cool place like a garage or place them in a hump of soil in the shadiest part of a yard to replant in the fall.
Reply:yes
Reply:Hi!!





Yes, you can cut them back to the ground, but I wouldn't advise it. When the green turns brown and pulls away easily, however, you can cut or mow them to the ground. The greenery soaking up the sun is where the bulb gets its energy to produce flowers for next year. My book, "Step-by-Step Successful Gardening", says to leave them, but you can leave them natural in an informal garden, or braid the foliage in a formal garden. If you want strong flowers year after year, though, they need to soak up the sun.





I have been telling my husband this year after year. He wondered why our daffodils didn't bloom this year. He hasn't mowed them down yet, maybe I made a "believer" out of him!! LOL





Enjoy your flowers.

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