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What should I do with bulbs after flowering?
Q What do I do with spring bulbs after flowering? Should the potted ones be lifted and stored?
Clive Gurman, via email
A If those bulbs that you planted in a border can be left to ‘naturalise’ and you are not planning to replace them with other plants, so much the better. Indeed, they will multiply well if left in situ.
As for those in containers, I suggest that when they’ve finished flowering you move them to a bed or border to establish well.
Ideally, liquid-feed all plants at weekly intervals with a high-potash tomato fertiliser while leaves are green and perky and before they fade to brown.
Don’t cut off or knot the leaves as they are dying back as this will prevent them from returning goodness to the bulbs for the following year’s display.
If you need the pots, remove bulbs when the foliage has withered and died back, and store them in a cool, airy place before replanting them in autumn.
Plant them at two or three times their own depth in soil that drains well. Bulbs that are panted too shallow might grow leaves but fail to produce any flowers the following spring
