Hybrid Tulips – Dig Up or Leave Planted

Q: Do you dig up the bulbs of hybrid tulips each year or just leave them planted.

A: Personally, I leave them planted because it’s questionable whether they will have many blooms after the first year. Georgia summers are so hot that the soil stays very warm and tulip bulbs reproduce rapidly underneath the soil. This means there are lots of small bulbs when spring rolls around but not many that are big enough to send up blooms. This can be alleviated somewhat by digging bulbs after the leaves turn yellow in May and storing them in a cool basement. If you leave your hybrid tulips in the ground, don’t be surprised if you get a lot of leaves but few flowers in spring.