Place the bulbs in a paper bag in the refrigerator. Be sure that the refrigerator is set at a temperature between 35°F and 50°F. Also, rid the refrigerator of any fruit (particularly apples) as these produce a plant hormone called “ethylene” when ripening which will cause flower bulbs to rot.
Most bulbs can be stored for up to a year, but tend to perform best when planted within six months of lifting. For tender bulbs, be sure to plant in the spring following the fall in which they were lifted-they will likely not have enough energy to survive past the warm season and into the following year.
Storing Bulbs Over Winter. You'll pack away your bulbs in a cool, dry place. An unheated garage that does not freeze can work well. Just keep in mind the ideal location has temperatures between 35 and 45ºF and relative humidity of about 50%.
As long as they haven't dried to powder or turned to mush, unplanted bulbs will come to full life, given a chance. Many bulbs don't get planted because we gardeners can't figure out where to plant them. The obvious solution is to plant them in containers, where they will do their utmost to catch up with their kin.
Bulbs usually begin to soften and rot or may actually sprout before they get planted. Even under ideal storage conditions, the bulbs will lose some of their food reserves through the natural plant process of respiration.
If you miss planting your bulbs at the optimal time, don't wait for spring or next fall. Bulbs aren't like seeds. They won't survive out of the ground indefinitely. Even if you find an unplanted sack of tulips or daffodils in January or February, plant them and take your chances.
Don't leave the pots sitting outdoors above ground in colder climates. If the soil temperature in the container drops below freezing the bulbs can freeze and die. You can move the containers into the landscape as your in-ground bulbs begin to sprout or enjoy an earlier spring indoors.
Store them in slightly moistened peat moss or vermiculite in a newspaper-lined crate, cardboard box or shoe box. Corms and bulbs like it cool, dark and dry. Once they've had a curing period, pack them away in small paper sacks with their cultivar name written on the outside or a mesh produce bag with a label.
Bulbs that don't get sufficient chilling tend to be stunted. They may bloom, but the flowers often open down in the leaves. In general, you will have a smaller, shorter plant and flower.
To Store the Bulbs: The bulbs need to be stored away from frost and rodents. Plastic containers with tight fitting lids are perfect for storage vessels. Put a layer of sand, vermiculite, peat moss, or even newspaper, on the bottom of the container.
To prevent bulbs from getting too hot, make sure to keep them away from the furnace, out of bright sunlight, not on top of the refrigerator or any other place that can get hot in your home. Ideal storage places in the home include a basement, closet or utility room that stays cool but above freezing.
The Most Popular Spring Bulbs That Need To Be Refrigerated
Tulips. Crocuses. Hyacinths.
Should you soak spring bulbs before planting? There's no need to soak them before planting. However, if you are late getting them into the ground, then soaking them for 12-24 hours can speed up the rooting process. Adding fish emulsion or liquid kelp to the water before soaking will help them root even faster.
Most bulbs will still flower if they were left out for up to a year unplanted. But realize that with every passing season, while it's still possible that they could grow and flower, their growth might be weaker and flower production and size will continue to go down.
They will grow up through ground covers, newspaper layers and bark chips and even push up and bloom through a lawn.
For most bulbs, use your fingers or a brush to remove dirt and soil from the surface. If your bulbs need to be stored with the soil on to stay healthy, as is the case with is menes, dahlias, caladiums, cannas, begonias, achimenes, and others, do not clean them. Discard bulbs that show signs of rot or damage.
Outsmart Old Man Winter by saving bulbs of frost-tender plants over winter and planting them again next spring. It's not a tough job, and you don't need any special knowledge or tools to succeed. Use this technique with plants that aren't winter hardy in your zone.
The bulbs need to be placed on several layers of newspaper or cardboard separately with none overlapping or touching. They should be out of the sun but with dry, warm, circulating air. Every few days, turn the bulbs over so all sides dry evenly. This drying period is toughening the skin so the bulbs will store well.
These should then be stored somewhere frost free and dark until you wish to plant them in autumn. It is worth checking the bulbs over the summer to make sure that none have rotted or become soft which would lead to disease infecting the rest.
As for cold, it couldn't be simpler--make sure your bulbs don't freeze.
Spring-flowering bulbs need a period of cold to flower properly, and keeping them chilled simulates a period of 'winter'. It's also important to make sure your spring bulbs are stored in the dark, so use an opaque bag to contain them.
Like most flower bulbs, tulips bulbs can be stored for around 12 months if they are cared for properly. Once you have dug them up, they should be allowed to dry and then stored in a net or bag in a cool dark place. It's easy to check whether your tulip bulbs are still good - they should feel plump, heavy and firm.
A great way to check bulb health is to use what's known as the “bucket test.” This simple method consists of putting about a half-dozen bulbs in a bucket of water. Healthy bulbs will sink. The bulbs that float are the ones that you should throw out.
Many bulbs readily multiply by producing offsets without any help from the gardener. But as well as taking advantage of this, it is quite simple to grow more of your favourite bulbs using just a few other techniques, including scaling, bulbils, seed and division.