Marianne's Response

Planting Spring Bulbs

Do you put any nutrients in when you plant Spring Bulbs?

Posted by Bonnie Cochrane on September 3, 2020

Marianne's Response

The traditional advice is to add some bone meal to the planting hole when adding spring flowering bulbs but the more scientifically correct advice is to feed your bulbs right after they bloom. The foliage left from daffodils and tulips sends energy to the following year's flowers. The bulbs you plant in the fall already have the formed flower ready to grow in the spring. I do not add any fertilizer at planting time, but instead feed the foliage after the bulbs bloom. Adding bone meal to your soil is a nice additive for future bulb growth, but  not the first year. Be aware that some critters are attracted to the smell of bone and blood meal, and some tulips act like annuals and tend to bloom great the first year  but are disappointing in the following years, even if you do leave and feed the tulip foliage after they are done flowering. Nice to see your smiling face in the image - Keep growing, Marianne Binetti