Deadheading tulips is a crucial aspect of tulip care. Knowing how and when to do this is important as it is an essential spring task for gardeners to complete once flowers begin to fade.
Tulip bulbs are usually planted in autumn from September to November when the plant is dormant.
Tulips then put on a spectacular floral show each spring, but once flowering is over and the petals begin to drop, it is time to deadhead their blooms.
Luckily, gardening expert Monty Don is on hand to share “the best way” to do so.
In his most recent blog post sharing gardening jobs for May, the 68-year-old said: “If you have tulips growing in borders, deadhead them once they are past their best.
“This will stop the development of seed so that all the energy goes into forming new bulbs for next year’s flowers.”
Deadheading is a necessary step as it stops the plants from wasting energy on developing seed heads.
Deadheading will also minimise the risk of tulip fire (a fungal disease of tulips), as the spores can persist in the petals after flowering.
Removing them before they drop means they won’t land on the soil, where they could survive until the following season.
Monty continued: “The best way to deadhead them is simply to snap off the spent flower with the growing seed pod using your fingers.”
While some gardeners may reach for their secateurs to deadhead these plants, the expert urges against this.
He said: “Do not cut back the stem or any of the foliage as this will all contribute to the growing bulbs as they slowly die back.”
However, some specialist tulip varieties don’t need to be deadheaded as these can be grown from seed. If this is the case, wait until the seed heads have completely ripened.
Some tulips can produce three to four new bulbs from the mother bulb after a couple of years. In the following seasons, they can produce more tulips and then more bulbs.
Tulip bulbs can be lifted, dried and stored over the summer months to improve their ability to reflower.
