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Sexy Plant Stems and Bulbs (What You Don't Know May Cost Y ou!) - Page 3

© Kate Berry

Dahlia fans are familiar with the finger-like tubers from which these plants spring. What they may not know is that tubers are simply modified stems. So is the fleshy rhizome from which a bearded iris springs, with its roots that grow from the lower portion and shoots that rise from the top. Even the familiar gladiolus corm, with its thick rounded shape and roots that emerge from the bottom, is nothing more than an underground stem.

Just like their aboveground counterparts, these underground stems are sensitive to damage and must be treated well if the plant is to survive. And, since they live below ground, they are especially vulnerable to rotting and decay, which can be a disappointment when only a handful of your 100 carefully planted tulips emerges to herald the spring.

So it is particularly important to treat these stems well, to place them in well-drained locations, and to be sure (I speak from experience here) to plant them with the growing tip up and the rooting (flat) side down. (If you're not sure which is which, carefully look for buds or growing eyes and, if that fails you, plant it sideways. At least you'll have a 50-50 chance of getting a bloom.)

But having said that, there is one more important thing you should know about bulbs (which, besides being able to plant them with the correct side up, is the only other good reason to know about their makeup):

Dividing Bulbs, Corms, Tubers and Rhizomes = More Free Plants

Many bulbs, like those of the tulip, will multiply underground and create bulblets that will, in time, grow into full-blown bulbs on their own. If the bulblets are not severed from the main bulb they'll compete for water and nutrition, and while you'll have a very lush growth of greenery, you won't get a single tulip bloom. By carefully digging up the bulb once the leaves have yellowed and pulling off the bulblets with a bit of root growth, you can propagate your tulips and save yourself a trip to the store.

Other bulbs, like those of the lily, will produce scales or bulbils. In the fall, scales can be carefully separated from the main bulb along with a portion of the roots, then placed in a planting medium where they will grow over the winter and be ready to plant by next spring. Bulbils, which look like jelly beans that form in the leaf axils along the stem, can be plucked and planted in the ground or stuck in a planting medium to grow over the winter.

The copyright of the article Sexy Plant Stems and Bulbs (What You Don't Know May Cost Y ou!) - Page 3 in Beginning a Garden is owned by Kate Berry. Permission to republish Sexy Plant Stems and Bulbs (What You Don't Know May Cost Y ou!) - Page 3 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.