How to grow potted tulips? Growing methods and precautions, light must be sufficient
When it comes to tulips, everyone has surely heard of them. They are a very famous flower, especially the golden tulip, which carries a noble meaning. In daily life, growing a pot of tulips at home is definitely a good choice, so how do you grow tulips? Besides the essential soil, watering and so on, light is something everyone must pay attention to. Below are the growing methods and precautions for tulips; friends who want to grow them should not miss this~
1. How to grow potted tulips, light must be sufficient
Compared with other flowers, the noble tulip has relatively high environmental requirements, so growing it indoors is not easy. However, as long as you understand its habits, growing tulips is actually not difficult. How to grow potted tulips requires attention to soil, light, watering and other aspects. Below are the growing methods and precautions for tulips; let's read on.
2. Growing methods and precautions for tulips
1. Soil, good drainage
Regarding the growing methods and precautions for tulips, the first thing to mention is naturally the soil, since soil is the foundation of potted plants. It is understood that tulips like fertile, loose, well-drained, water-retaining and air-permeable slightly acidic soil. For this, the editor recommends that flower lovers choose soil mixed from peat, decomposed soil and sand in a 1:1:1 ratio, which gives better results.
Precautions: Tulips avoid alkaline soil and heavy clay soil; in addition, the soil used for tulips should be disinfected, and 40% formalin at a 50-fold dilution can be sprayed for disinfection.
2. Sunlight, must be sufficient
Tulips love light, so in the growing methods and precautions for tulips, flower lovers should ensure that tulips have sufficient light. If light is insufficient, it will cause poor plant growth, which in turn leads to many problems, such as weakened plants, bud drop, lighter leaf color and a shortened flowering period.
Precautions: Although tulips like light, during the half month after potting they should be properly shaded to help the bulbs develop new roots. In addition, when sprouting, shade appropriately to prevent overly fast growth; after seedlings emerge, increase light; in the later stage, after the flower buds are fully colored, prevent direct sunlight to extend the flowering time.
3. Watering, neither dry nor wet
When growing flowers indoors, watering is essential. Before planting tulips, adjust the soil moisture so that it is neither dry nor wet, maintaining a certain humidity. After sprouting, control water appropriately; when the leaves gradually extend, you can spray water on the leaf surface. During the flower stalk stage and bud stage, increase the amount of watering to promote full flower development; after flowering, control water appropriately.
Precautions: During the tulip growing period, flower lovers had best not water it, and just keep the soil moist. In dry weather, water appropriately 1 to 2 times, with a wetting depth of 15 cm.
4. Fertilizing, top-dress 2-3 times
In the growing methods and precautions for tulips, fertilizing also cannot be ignored. It is understood that tulips do not have high fertilizer requirements, but if you want them to grow well, appropriately applying some nitrogen fertilizer is necessary. After the root system develops well, apply 2 kg of calcium nitrate per 100 sq m, spread in three applications, with each interval more than one week.
Precautions: Tulips are very sensitive to fertilizer, so in early spring, from stem and leaf extension to budding, flower lovers only need to top-dress 2 to 3 times.
5. Temperature, 9-13°C
How to grow tulips: temperature is also very key. It is understood that tulips like warm winters and cool summers, with the best growing temperature being 9-13°C, so to make tulips grow fast, it is best to keep them at this temperature. It is worth mentioning that tulips are strongly cold-resistant and can withstand low temperatures of -35°C in winter.
Precautions: Tulips avoid high temperatures; when the temperature is too high, the flowers easily decline. Under cool conditions, tulips not only have vivid flower colors but also a long flowering period, so flower lovers must not be careless about temperature.
6. Pest and disease control
How to grow potted tulips: pest and disease control is especially key. During the growth of tulips, the main diseases include stem rot, soft rot, color breaking disease, damping-off and blind buds, while the main pest is mostly aphids.
Precautions: To prevent the invasion of pests and diseases, before planting tulips, flower lovers should disinfect the soil; in addition, they should maintain good ventilation to prevent high temperature and high humidity. As for tulip pest and disease control, it was introduced specifically earlier, so I will not say more here.
Growing methods and precautions for potted tulips
Tulips have a unique flower type, large blooms, bright colors, and many varieties, with especially good ornamental value. Tulips can not only be planted in major scenic areas for people to view, but can also be made into potted plants for growing at home. It is just that many people do not understand the growing methods and precautions for potted tulips, so they always fail to grow tulips well at home. Today I will write out their growing methods and precautions and share them all with everyone.
Growing methods and precautions for potted tulips1. Selection of bulbs and potting soil
Usually, the selection of potted tulip bulbs and the configuration of the potting soil are both very important. Everyone must choose high-quality bulbs that are mature, robust, firm in texture, intact and free of disease, insect damage and spots. For the potting soil for growing potted tulips, choose a fertile, loose, well-drained soil that remains slightly acidic. Tulips are fertilizer-loving plants, so when preparing potting soil, you can choose leaf mold and decomposed cake fertilizer as base fertilizer.
2. Light and temperature
When growing potted tulips, choose a place with sufficient sunlight. When growing them at home, it is best to place them on a sunny windowsill or balcony, because they are light-loving plants. If they do not receive sunlight for a long time, their leaves will turn yellow and the flowering period will be directly affected. Tulips grow fastest when the outside temperature is 10 to 20°C and bloom promptly; when the outside temperature is too high or too low, it will affect the growth of tulips and make them slow to bloom.
3. Precautions for growing potted tulips
When normally growing potted tulips, after buying fresh bulbs, be sure to disinfect the bulbs first, otherwise the bulbs are prone to rotting after planting. In addition, the potting soil for cultivating potted tulips must be sandy loam soil, and absolutely must not use sticky alkaline soil. Also, after the bulbs are planted, the soil must have sufficient moisture, otherwise the bulbs will not sprout at all.
How to grow potted tulips? Growing methods for potted tulips
Tulip flowers are gorgeous and loved by many friends. Many people have begun to choose to grow potted tulips, so how should potted tulips be grown? Below I will introduce the growing methods for potted tulips.
1. Choose the right variety and suitable bulbs
(1) Choose dwarf varieties
Not all tulip varieties are suitable for potted cultivation. In fact, it is best to choose genetically dwarf varieties or wild-type tulip varieties, because their stems are relatively short and their leaves are compact. Dwarfing potted tulip plants can also be achieved by reducing the length of cold treatment or by using growth hormones such as chlormequat.
(2) Choose the correct bulb size
Potted tulips require high-quality, large-size bulbs. This is because even if only one bulb in the pot fails to sprout, it will affect the cultivation effect of the whole pot and make it a substandard product.
(3) Plan from bulb treatment to the flowering stage
After the bulbs are harvested, tulip bulbs need to first undergo a high-temperature treatment and then a low-temperature treatment so that they bloom in early spring. Whether for potted tulip or cut flower production, if earlier flowering is desired, these requirements must be met. It can be accomplished through temperature treatment. In the heat treatment stage after bulb harvest, the leaves, flower stalk and flower in the bulb form in the above order. Once the pistil has formed, the flower has already formed, which means the G stage has been reached. After the G stage is reached, following a short intermediate temperature treatment, bulbs intended for early flowering can undergo cold treatment. For late-flowering bulbs, the heat treatment stage must be extended to delay the start of cold treatment.
2. Control growth of potted tulips through proper cold treatment
(1) Pay attention to temperature
For wild-type or other dwarf varieties, the preparation for potted flower production is actually the same as for cut flower production. But be careful not to make the cold treatment time for the bulbs too long, as this will make them grow too tall. For the treatment of bulbs intended for early flowering, it is best to first cold-treat the dry bulbs for a certain period, then pot them two months before preparing to move the bulbs into the greenhouse, and complete the cold treatment.
Unrooted bulbs can be potted directly to complete their entire cold treatment. Those with excessive roots can even be controlled with low temperature after rooting. During early forcing cultivation, insufficient cold treatment time can sometimes lead to blind flowers.
For tulips required to bloom at Christmas, special varieties must be used and special treatment carried out.
(2) Treatment after bulbs arrive
It is recommended to use bulbs that have already been treated. In this way, storage is not needed and the risks brought by storage are avoided.
When they arrive, if the bulbs cannot yet be planted or their treatment has not been completed, they need to be stored in a dry, low-temperature and moderately ventilated building. The best method is, when using bulbs that have already undergone partial cold treatment, to keep them in a low-temperature environment of 5°C or 9°C. Bulbs that have not undergone cold treatment are stored at 17°C, and the environment must be dry with good air circulation, until the bulbs are planted or placed in cold storage to complete the required cold treatment at 9°C, 5°C or 2°C.
3. Use fresh potting soil and cover it
Prepare suitable potting soil with a good ratio of water and air (at most 80% water and at least 10% air content); pH 6 to 7; EC<1，且要新鲜（不含病原菌）。盆土常用的混合比例为60％的土壤+40％的泥炭，也可加15％的沙子。通常不必施肥。顶肥只用在那些容易出现水分外渗和茎中空的品种中。如出现此情况，在促成栽培时可使用顶肥0.5公斤/立方米或在移入温室后使用50克/平方米的硝酸钙。
Number of bulbs per pot: all kinds of plastic pots can be used for tulip cultivation. The number of bulbs planted per pot depends on the size of the pot. A 7 cm diameter pot plants one bulb, and a 9 to 13 cm pot plants 3 to 5 bulbs. The most important thing is that there must be at least 5 cm of soil below the bulbs for rooting and to provide suitable moisture and air for the root system. When planting, 2/3 of the bulb should be below the soil.
It is recommended to water before planting, and if moisture is insufficient after planting, water again.
4. Formulation of the production plan
A forcing cultivation plan can be made based on the length of the required cold treatment stage.
If potted tulips are sold throughout the winter, then planting and moving into the greenhouse can be carried out every week. Sometimes, all potted tulips receive the standard 14-week cold treatment, so tulip planting and moving into the greenhouse can be carried out every week. For the others, try to finish planting the tulip bulbs in November, then when the shoots have grown long enough, temporarily place them in a rooting room with the temperature controlled at 1°C to -1°C.
The cultivation time in the greenhouse depends on the variety, the time of moving into the greenhouse and the greenhouse temperature. The greenhouse cultivation time gradually shortens as the season progresses, and also depends on the time of product sales.
The planting time depends on the desired flowering time. For plants hoped to flower around Christmas or January, they must be planted early. Likewise, for plants hoped to flower late, the bulb planting time should also be delayed.
For outdoor soil cultivation, soil temperature determines the planting time. If a rooting room is used, since the temperature can be controlled, the planting time can be earlier. In some years during outdoor cultivation, the soil temperature is too high; in this case, the cold treatment time will be shortened and the risk of pathogen infection will increase.
Stacking trays holding flower pots must allow sufficient air flow. Keeping a distance of about 10 cm between the boxes and the wall will also appropriately increase air flow.
5. Pay attention to plant development after moving into the greenhouse
(1) Moving into the greenhouse
When the cold treatment is completely finished, the potted tulips can be moved into the greenhouse. There must be sufficient light in the greenhouse to make the shoots turn green. Once moved into the greenhouse, water carefully to keep them moist.
Maintain the greenhouse temperature at 16°C to 20°C and relative humidity at about 75%. Horizontal fans in the greenhouse can ensure a balanced climate in the greenhouse and stimulate plant transpiration.
The cultivation time in the greenhouse is 2 to 4 weeks, also depending on the cold treatment time, the greenhouse temperature, the variety and the time of moving into the greenhouse (early or late).
(2) Control the height of potted tulips
Providing the minimum cold treatment time while keeping the light intensity in the greenhouse high can make tulip plants grow short. If neither is possible (for example, late forcing cultivation), growth regulators such as chlormequat can be used. For early forcing cultivation, the use of growth regulators is not advocated.
Prepare the chlormequat solution according to the product instructions, then spray it. Growth regulators (including chlormequat) are banned in some countries. These chemicals remain in the soil for a long time. Therefore, be careful when reusing soil that has been treated with chlormequat.
The above is an introduction to the growing methods for potted tulips. Friends who need it can, according to these methods and actual conditions, grow the potted tulips they like.