How to grow tulips and best varieties

Tulips are stunning spring bulbs that flower in April and May.

They grow well in both pots and borders, and the bulbs should be planted in late autumn.

Which? Gardening magazine grew and compared tulip varieties for pots, plus single-flowered ones and double-flowered ones to help you choose the best.

Key facts

• Plant type - Spring-flowering bulbs
• Position - Full sun or partial shade
• Soil - Well-drained soil

How to grow tulips: month by month

Growing tulips

Planting in the ground

Plant tulip bulbs in a sunny sheltered spot, at three times their own depth, spacing them 10-20cm apart. 

Wait until November to plant them to avoid the fungal disease tulip fire. 

Growing tulips in pots

If growing in pots, add a controlled-release fertiliser to a Best Buy compost for containers.  Plant bulbs in layers to boost the display and pack them in for maximum effect.

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Best tulip varieties

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Full testing results for tulips

Single-flowered tulips

Double-flowered tulips

Tulips for pots

Parrot tulips

Multi-headed tulips

Fringed tulips

Novelty tulips

How we test tulips

We planted the bulbs in our trial grounds in November. 

As they came into flower in the spring, we kept records of how long they were in flower, noting whether all the plants of the same variety flowered at a similar time and height.

We kept an eye out for any problems caused by pests, diseases or the weather. 

For the tulips for pots, we also assessed the plants’ suitability for pots, looking especially at the length and thickness of their stems.

Will tulips reflower?

It’s tempting to leave tulips in the ground or their pots in the hope that they will grow and flower again the following year. However, they have a reputation for being unreliable when it comes to getting them to flower more than once. And while some seem to return each year, others simply disappear, leaving you with gaps in your display. It can happen even if you plant them in pots, with flowering becoming  weaker each year or stopping completely. 

When we tested double-flowered varieties we found that the display was less impressive for the double flowered types that we left in the ground to reflower a second year. Only a handful of varieties – ‘Aveyron’, ‘Blue Diamond’, ‘Crème Upstar’, ‘Hermitage Double’, ‘Margarita’ and ‘Sun Lover’ – came back with a decent number of blooms, so it’s probably best to think of double tulips as annuals and plant fresh bulbs each autumn. 

When we tested single tulips most varieties had a shorter peak flowering period in their second year, though three – 'Affaire', 'Annie Schilder' and 'Brown Sugar' – were the same in both years. Some bulbs were lost over winter and many varieties suffered from tulip fire and colour-breaking virus which affected their apperance.

We've also tested planting strategies to encourage reliable reflowering as it’s expensive to buy fresh bulbs every year. Lifting bulbs after flowering and then replanting in the autumn, especially for bulbs in pots, will give better results than leaving bulbs in situ. Alternatively, try planting under deciduous trees and shrubs to give the dry summer conditions they prefer. If you do leave bulbs in the ground applying a liquid foliar feed at the end of flowering and removing all the dead heads may encourage flowering for the second year.

Our verdict: Lift and store your bulbs for replanting or buy fresh bulbs each autumn.

Discover our best liquid feeds

Caring for tulips after flowering

Deadhead after flowering and clear away dead foliage. 

Once the foliage has died down, you can lift and store bulbs for next year. Allow the bulbs to dry out and only store large, intact, healthy ones. Keep them in paper bags in a cool dry place, such as a shed, garage or basement.

Common tulip growing problems

Tulip fire

The signs to look for are stunted or twisted leaves as the foliage emerges. If the leaves do open, they are often ragged, with brown spots and the 'scorched' appearance which gives the virus its name. Flowers bear similar symptoms. There's sometimes a fuzzy grey mould, especially in damp weather. Tiny black seed-like structures called sclerotia form in the dead foliage and can contaminate the soil for several years. 

If you notice signs of blight on emerging tulips, as soon as possible remove them carefully, preferably in dry weather when the fungus isn't producing spores, and burn them. Whatever you do, don't add them to your compost heap.

Tulip fire lives in the soil so unfortunately you can't replant with tulips for at least three years. You can still plant tulips in containers, or in containers that you sink into the ground and remove after flowering. There are no chemical controls.

Slugs and snails

Slugs and snails can nibble the young leaves. Pick off any you find and use ferric-phosphate slug pellets. Squirrels often dig up bulbs, so you may need to cover them with chicken wire until the first shoots emerge.

Read more about the best organic slug and snail controls

Colour-breaking virus

This is transmitted by aphids and causes breaks or streaks in petal colour. Ensure that you buy bulbs from a reputable supplier and destroy affected bulbs to prevent spread.

Read more about how to get rid of slugs and snails