Fertilize your perennials (bulbs & tubers)

Perennials should be fertilized not only in the spring but throughout the growing season.
Ideally, fertilizer should be applied in the early spring before the plants emerge. If plants have already emerged, don't worry. Apply the bulb food at a rate of one cup per ten square feet of bedding. Repeat this application every eight weeks. After the first freeze put down one last application and repeat the process next spring.

Transplanting perennials such as day lilies

“Transplant shock” can occur when transplanting any type of plant. To minimize the shock for day lilies and other perennials that have already emerged, do the following:

• Leave a small ball of soil around the plant when removing it from the ground
• Keep the soil ball a little moist
• Transport it in a container that will allow the ball to stay intact

The new bed where the lilies will be transplanted should be filled with good fertile dirt or a type of premixed bedding soil.

The next step is very important and will greatly increase your lilies chances of becoming well established in their new bed: only use root starter at the time of planting. Root starter is a type of liquid fertilizer that promotes quick and robust root development and at the same time provides nutrients for good top growth. Continue to use root starter once a week for six weeks, thereafter use a granular bulb food (I like Johnson’s Bulb Food) at a rate of one cup per ten square feet of bedding. Repeat the granular bulb food again in eight weeks.

See my blog entry about Fertilizer for bulbs and tubers for more information on caring for established perennials