Tulip Care
After investing time and money planting bulbs in the fall, a little care through spring is what gets you to a full bed of blooms. Tulips are hardy, but a handful of common problems can undercut a season if you're not watching for them.
Feeding and Watering
Feed tulips twice a year, with the most important application in early spring before they bloom — a tablespoon of granular fertilizer worked into the soil around each bulb is enough. Avoid feeding after flowering, since it can invite disease rather than help the plant. Tulips also want consistent water; if rainfall is light, plan to water the bed at least once a week.
Watching for Trouble
Rabbits and squirrels are the most common above-ground pests — rabbits go after the shoots, squirrels dig up and eat the bulbs themselves. A physical fence, chicken wire, or netting laid over the bulbs at planting time heads off both. Voles and grubs are harder to manage; grub-specific insecticide applied once or twice a year is the most reliable option where they're a recurring problem.
Tulips typically bloom for only two to three weeks. Plant other flowers in the same bed so something fills in visually once the tulips fade.
