Options for Filling In Your Garden After Tulips Fade

Tulips herald the arrival of spring with their brightly colored blooms. But their glory is fleeting, leaving behind unsightly foliage and empty spaces once they finish flowering. Luckily, many plants can follow tulips to keep your garden going strong all season.

In this article, we’ll look at the best choices for what to plant after tulips fade With the right selection and planting strategy, you can seamlessly transition your garden from tulips to luscious summer plantings

Why Tulips Leave Gaps

Before exploring replacement plant ideas. let’s look at why tulips disappear and leave holes in the garden

• Tulips are ephemeral spring bulbs, meaning they complete their entire growth cycle in spring

• The foliage sticks around for about 6 weeks after the blooms are done. But it quickly turns yellow and unattractive.

• The bulbs go dormant by early summer and the foliage dies back entirely by mid-summer.

• Only species tulips that naturalize will rebloom yearly. Most hybrid tulips only last 1-3 seasons before disappearing.

So even though tulips bring joy in spring, they leave empty spaces once summer hits. But other plants can swoop in to take their place.

Tips for Filling In After Tulips

Here are some general tips when selecting plants to follow your tulips:

• Choose perennials that return yearly so you don’t have to replant.

• Use fast-growing annuals to quickly fill gaps left by bulbs.

• Focus on foliage to disguise spent tulip leaves.

• Mix heights and shapes for interest after tulips are done blooming.

• Include bulbs and tubers that bloom after tulips fade.

• Mulch beds after tulips finish to suppress weeds in bare areas.

Best Annuals to Follow Tulips

Here are some top annual flowers that can be planted after tulips:

Marigolds

Marigolds are hardy, fast-growing annuals that bloom all summer into fall with orange, yellow, and red flowers. They germinate quickly and will rapidly fill spaces once tulips die back.

Zinnias

These heat-loving annuals produce profuse blooms in almost any soil once temperatures warm up. Dwarf varieties work especially well sprinkled into tulip beds.

Cosmos

Feathery foliage and tall stems bearing pink, white, or red flowers make cosmos excellent tulip successors. Some new blooms appear as late as frost.

Sunflowers

Miniature sunflowers work nicely in gaps between leftover tulip bulbs. They bloom within several weeks of planting.

Calendulas

Also called pot marigolds, these cheery yellow and orange flowers bloom until hard frost, acting as living mulch around faded tulips.

Petunias

Both spreading and upright petunias quickly form mounds of colorful flowers. Choose multiflora types for the fastest fill after bulbs decline.

Best Perennials to Follow Tulips

These perennial flowers can be planted as small starts in spring and will return yearly after tulips:

Daylilies

Rapidly spreading daylilies thrive in average soil and light. Plant different color varieties together for continuous blooms after tulips die.

Russian Sage

Russian sage can be planted around existing tulip bulbs in early spring. Its lavender-blue flower wands nicely contrast spent tulip foliage.

Salvias

The wide array of ornamental salvias offer spiky flowers in many colors on continually expanding plants, obscuring dying bulbs.

Shasta Daisies

Shasta daisies produce an abundance of white blooms with yellow centers on bushy, 2-3 feet tall plants that thrive when planted after bulbs fade.

Veronica

Speedwell bears countless slender blue or purple flower spikes on continually spreading plants which fill in beautifully after tulips decline.

Yarrow

Easy-care yarrow comes in many colors and makes a drought-tolerant rest-of-season filler around yellowing bulb foliage.

Best Bulbs & Tubers to Follow Tulips

For continuous blooms from the same planting hole, try these bulbs after tulips:

Gladioluses

Gladiolus flowers thrive if planted over tulip bulbs in late spring, offering tall spikes of color into summer.

Begonias

Tuberous begonias planted through fading tulip foliage give continuous summer color in shady beds.

Dahlias

Dahlias bloom from midsummer until frost, taking over spots where tulips previously flowered. Plant tubers in spring.

Lilies

Summer flowering lily bulbs fit nicely into spaces where spring tulips were dug up. This avoids having to replant the entire bed.

Alliums

Ornamental alliums come in many sizes and colors. Pop the bulbs in between your tulips in fall for lovely spring through summer blooms.

With the right selections, your garden can transition seamlessly from tulips into an extended season of beauty. Just plant new additions while bulb foliage is still around to feed next year’s blooms.

Creative Solutions for Filling Gaps After Tulips

Beyond flowers, here are some other clever ways to fill the void after tulips:

• Plant fragrant herbs like lavender, sage, thyme, and rosemary in spaces where bulbs once bloomed.

• Fill holes with annual vegetables that can be tucked in around bulbs such as lettuce, kale and radish.

• Install pavers or stones to create decorative paths where fading flowers used to be.

• Add containers filled with colorful annuals or foliage plants.

• Cover bare spots with mulch to suppress weeds until fall planting.

With a bit of creativity, you can come up with aesthetically pleasing solutions for empty spots instead of just waiting for those spent tulip bulbs to fill back in.

Planning Ahead for Planting After Tulips

The easiest strategy is to plan ahead in fall by planting bulbs in pairs. Place a spring flowering tulip next to a later blooming narcissus, lily, or allium that will take center stage after the tulip finishes.

This way, your garden transitions seamlessly between spring, summer, and fall with continuous blooms from the same spaces.

Make the Most of Tulips’ Short Stay

Tulips offer a brief but dramatic display of spring color. But don’t let their dormancy detract from your garden’s beauty all season long. With a bit of planning, you can enjoy continuous blooms or attractive foliage right where vivid tulips once flourished.

Select annuals, perennials, bulbs, and creative solutions to keep your garden looking its best even after the tulips take their final bow.