How to Care for Angelique Tulip Flower
Tulips ‘Angelique’ are flowering members of the lily family and are some of the most widely cultivated ornamental plants in the world. Their large, showy, cup-shaped blossoms have for centuries been associated with beauty and elegance. These plants were also at the heart of what is often considered to be the first speculative bubble in history, when in the mid-17th century, “Tulip-mania” gripped the Netherlands. It was a market frenzy that sent the prices of tulip bulbs skyrocketing to the point where they were used as a currency. Today, the Netherlands is still famous for its huge and stunningly colorful tulip fields. Skagit Valley in the state of Washington is another location famed for its tulip cultivation.
Basic Care Guide
Water
Tulips have low water requirements. Whether they are grown in flower pots or in the garden, watering them once after planting is usually enough. During the flowering period, potted tulips need to be watered regularly to maintain soil moisture and prevent drying. After the flowering period ends, continue to keep the soil moist until the leaves wither.
The soil in a small pot dries out more easily, so it needs to be watered more often, but water accumulation should be avoided. Rainwater will be sufficient for garden tulips unless the weather is too dry, when additional watering may be required.
Fertilizer
Tulips are often used as disposable bulbs, discarded after bloom, or bulbs dug up in the summer and stored, so no additional fertilizer is needed. If the soil is of poor quality, mix a little balanced fertilizer or bone meal into the soil when planting the bulbs.
sunlight
Tulips love a location with good sun. Whether grown in pots or in the garden, tulips need to be exposed to the sun for at least 7 hours a day to have beautiful flowers. Tulips do not need shade.
cut
Timely pruning of dried flowers can avoid excessive consumption of nutrients and energy during the fruit bearing period, thus preserving the nutrients in the bulbs, prolonging the blooming time of any other flowers, and increasing strengthen the vitality of the tree.
If you want to get seeds from tulips, wait for the pods to dry and crack open after the flowers wilt. Cut off the scab at the base after collecting the seeds. In general, each tulip bulb is planted only once in a lifetime. After the flowering period, the tubers can be dug out and removed along with the withered leaves.
Advanced Care Guide
Temperature
Most hybrid tulip varieties are cold tolerant. When the air temperature drops below 5℃ for 3 to 4 weeks, it really promotes flower bud differentiation and improves the flowering rate of tulip bulbs. In addition, tulips do not require much water, so you should only water once when planting. In general, water accumulation should be avoided as it can cause tulip bulbs to rot. When storing tulip bulbs, make sure the surrounding air is as dry as possible to prevent rotting.
Land
Tulips prefer rich, well-drained, alkaline soil. They will also grow well on nutrient-poor sandy soils but not on clay soils, which can affect the growth of tulip bulbs. Adding coarse sand and humus to the clay will increase air permeability and good drainage, providing optimal growing conditions for ‘Angelique’ tulips. For acidic soils, adding lime can raise the pH of the soil – this is better for tulips as they are adapted to grow in soils with a pH between 6 and 7.
Breeding, Cultivating, Harvesting
Small bulbs usually form around tulip bulbs and they can also be collected for planting. In late winter or early spring, take the tulip bulbs you have stored and remove the small bulbs from the plant. Plant them in prepared pots of soil. Make sure the distance between each bulb is three times the diameter of the small bulbs.
Then, cover the tubers with soil 3 cm thick. Finally, place the flower pot in a shady place, keeping the soil moist. After a year, many bulbs can be planted together in the same flower pot with a little fertilizer mixed with the soil. After about 2 to 3 years, they will grow to a size suitable for flowering.
