Spring is the time for the plant world to awaken from hibernation. And the first bells among the thawed patches are the appearance of bright tulips. In order for them to grow strong and bloom in the same season, you need to prepare in advance and carry out the treatment tulip bulbs before planting in autumn. To do this, the products are removed from the storage location, inspected, peeled, and disinfected.
How and where to store bulbs before planting
Once the bulbs are dug up, they are dried. Clear of all debris: leaves, roots, dirt. Experienced gardeners recommend pickling the tubers in a weak solution of potassium permanganate, especially if you plan to store the products before winter.
- Long-term storage requires periodic inspection of the bulbs. Damaged or rotten ones are thrown away.
- Spread on the surface in one layer and dry in the shade.
- On day 5, the babies are separated and dried again.
- The kernels are placed in a box, each tuber is wrapped in paper or sprinkled with sawdust. This will prevent the accumulation of excess moisture.
- Store the container in the basement, refrigerator (vegetable compartment), unheated room, heat chamber on the balcony.
- Until autumn planting, keep at a temperature of 20 degrees Celsius.
- Before spring planting, the temperature is reduced to 17.
- To know exactly the storage conditions and monitor them, place a thermometer in the container.
What is pre-planting treatment of tulip bulbs?
Tulip tubers are pulled out of storage, and then the bulbs are prepared for planting.
Pre-planting treatment of tulip bulbs includes several stages.
- Products are cleaned of hard, dry skins.
- Each specimen is carefully inspected for diseases, rot, and lethargy.
- Reanimate damaged specimens. Here it is up to the gardener to decide whether to soak the diseased bulbs in a rescue solution or throw them away immediately.
- The last stage is treatment with disinfectants right before planting.
Peeling the onions
The husks are removed on the day of planting. The top layer may contain foci of infection that are invisible at first glance. Remove all dry scales. This way the plant will better absorb nutrients from the soil.
Careful inspection
All tulip roots are poured onto the table after storage.Each tuber is examined carefully to detect rot, lethargy, and mechanical damage. All healthy and strong ones are left aside for now. Deal with damaged copies. If possible, they will resuscitate it; if not, they will throw it away.
Sorting of planting material
As soon as the tulips are peeled, they move on to sorting. Three containers should be prepared - for large, medium, small specimens.
Large and medium-sized tubers are needed for planting. The latter are sent for rearing. Of course, the work is troublesome and takes time. There is another option, without sorting - to purchase bags of prepackaged rhizomes at a flower shop.
How to disinfect tulip bulbs?
Before planting, tulips are treated with traditional substances: potassium permanganate, Fundazol. Experienced gardeners do not recommend the first method, as it is used after digging for storage. It is better to dip the material in the antifungal drug Fundazol. Dosage: add 30 grams of product to 10 liters of water.
Among the new drugs are drugs that are also growth stimulants:
- Fitosporin. The solution is prepared 2 hours before soaking. Dosage: 10 grams of product per half liter of water. 20 kilograms of produce are soaked in this mixture.
- Maksim. Soak the tulips for 30 minutes before planting. Solution: 2 liters of water, 4 milliliters of the drug. The mixture is designed for 2 kilograms of product.
- Epin-extra. The drug has a third function - it activates all the protective properties of the plant. Dosage: 1 milliliter of product per 2 liters of water. The solution should not be kept in the sun. Tulips can withstand for 1 day.
- Vitaros. The bulbs are placed in the solution for 2 hours (2 milliliters of product per 1 liter of water).
The bulbs should be pickled and immediately carefully planted in open ground.
Processing bulbs with minor damage
Problems that may occur during storage of bulbs include:
- The high temperature caused the tubers to shrivel. Such specimens cannot be planted in the ground. Nothing good will come of this. Even if shoots appear, the plant will be unhealthy. And this is a threat to the entire landing. In this situation, it is necessary to replenish the water balance of the bulb. To do this, prepare a solution of water with 0.5% potassium permanganate. Dip gauze into it and wrap the damaged specimen. Leave it for 2 days - the planting material will regain its original appearance. Then feel free to plant it in the ground.
- It happens that the bulb looks sluggish. Potassium permanganate will not help here. Take a growth stimulator, for example, Kornevin, Epin. Dilute it according to the instructions and lower the wilted tuber. After the planting material has recovered, it is planted at the planting site.
- Soft bulb. Juice flows when pressed. In this case, the planting material is thrown away - it is impossible to save it.
- Rotten places on a tuber. The reason may be high importance. First of all, the rotten areas are cleaned away to healthy tissue. Treat the wound with brilliant green. Place damaged specimens in a damp cloth for a day. Then transfer to damp sand until complete recovery for 2-3 days. The last procedure is sun drying.
- Frozen bulbs. According to the instructions, dilute the growth stimulator and leave the damaged elements in for a day. Next, sprinkle the bulbs with dry peat and put them in the refrigerator for another 24 hours. Only then can you plant it in a flowerbed.
- Gray coating on the surface of the tuber. This could be fusarium disease. The plaque is removed with a knife and treated with a special preparation. The fungicide is sprinkled on the affected areas and left for 2 days. During this time, a cork film is formed.
All resuscitation procedures should be applied to rare varieties. In other cases, it is better to get rid of damaged copies.
Is it worth fertilizing the soil?
Tulips can be grown without fertilizing. Only in the second year will they be too different from their fellows who are fed. The flowers will be smaller, the stem will be thin, the plant will be susceptible to diseases as the immune system is weakened.
Only in fertile soil do tulips feel good, but the plants greatly deplete the soil, drawing out all the nutrients from it, so four feedings are required in a short growing season - 2 months.
Flowers need a complex of fertilizers: nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, in different ratios. Nitrogen is responsible for the growth of green mass, potassium helps to quickly take root, phosphorus is involved in the formation of buds. At each stage of feeding, one of the components is in the lead.
No less important for flowers are microfertilizers containing the following elements: nickel, iron, boron, zinc, manganese, copper.
Although they are required in microdoses, they bring considerable benefits to the plant:
- form a strong stem and large inflorescences;
- strengthen the immune system;
- participate in metabolic processes and photosynthesis;
- resist diseases and pests;
- increase frost resistance.
Microfertilizers are applied using foliar feeding. The set of fertilizers depends on the season. When planting in autumn, choose fertilizers that promote rapid rooting and protection from external factors. In spring, components are needed for the growth of green mass (leaf, stem) and roots.
Tulips are grown at home for forcing. There is no need to apply a lot of fertilizing here, since another task is being performed - rooting the bulbs. Before planting, you only need to add a calcium nitrate solution to the soil.The rest of the care consists of choosing a cool temperature, humidity, and watering.
As a conclusion
As you can see, simply taking tulips out of storage and planting them in open ground is not enough. To produce large, healthy buds, you have to try. Go through certain steps before planting: clean, sort, disinfect the bulbs.
