Can you plant tulip bulbs in December and January?

Found a bag of tulip bulbs in the shed, or just didn't get round to it in October? It's not too late. Tulips are surprisingly forgiving — but there are a few things you need to know.

4 min read · Updated 5 November 2026

12–16 weeks of cold

and the bulb will flower

Sep–Nov: Best planting time
Dec–Jan: Fine while the ground isn't frozen
Feb–Mar: Too late for the ground — use pots kept cold

The short answer

Tulip bulbs need to go in before winter — but “before winter” lasts longer than many people think. In Denmark the ground is rarely frozen for long, and as long as you can get a spade in, you can plant.

What matters most is that the bulbs get a period of cold. It's the cold that triggers flowering. Without it you get leaves but no flowers, or very small ones.

Why tulips need the cold

Tulips come from regions with cold winters. The bulb has a kind of built-in counter that only gives the flower the green light once it has been cold — below about 9 °C — for 12–16 weeks.

Plant in December and the bulbs get cold from December to March. That's enough. Plant at the end of January and it's closer to the limit, but in a normal Danish spring it usually works.

Check the bulbs before planting

Bulbs that have been lying around may have suffered. Feel each bulb before you plant it:

What you see	What it means	Do this
Firm, heavy bulb	Healthy	Plant it
A little blue-green mould on the surface	Surface mould from storage — often harmless	Wipe it off, and plant the bulb if it's firm
Soft, wet or dark bulb	Rot	Throw it out — not on the compost
Light, dried-out, wrinkled bulb	Dried out	Plant it anyway, but don't count on a flower
Small green shoot at the tip	The bulb wants to get going	Plant it straight away, shoot up

How to plant late — step by step

Pick a frost-free day when you can dig.
Plant at normal depth: about 12–15 cm to the base of the bulb — 2–3 times the bulb's height — pointy end up.
Plant a little closer than usual. Late-planted tulips often end up a bit smaller, and close planting gives a fuller display.
Don't water if the soil is already moist.
Cover the bed with dead leaves or conifer branches if a cold snap is coming. It keeps the soil open and protects against hard frost.

Ground frozen? Plant in pots

If you can't get the spade in, plant the bulbs in pots or planters with ordinary potting compost. Stand the pots outside somewhere sheltered — they still need the cold.

Use pots with drainage holes.
Plant close — the bulbs can almost touch.
In hard frost: move the pots close to the house, or wrap them in hessian.
When the ground thaws you can plant the whole root ball out in the border — or let them flower in the pot.

Sheltered by a wall
Raised on feetSo water can drain away.
Hessian or bubble wrapOnly in hard, lasting frost.

February, March or later?

From February it gets hard to reach 12–16 weeks of cold before spring arrives for real. You have two options:

Plant them anyway. Some flower late, others only give leaves this year — but a healthy bulb can flower the year after.
Plant them in pots and keep them cold for a few weeks — e.g. in an unheated shed or outside in the shade — before bringing them into the light.

What you shouldn't do is save the bulbs for next autumn. They won't keep for a whole year out of the ground.

What can you expect?

Late-planted tulips usually flower 1–3 weeks later than those planted in October, and the stems may be a little shorter. Species tulips and early varieties are the most forgiving.

When to plant tulip bulbs →Tulips in pots →All tulips →