What Should I Do With Mums & Tulips That Were Given for Easter?

Indoor Care

• Like any houseplant, a flowering gift plant needs water and light to keep it looking its best. Unlike other houseplants, potted tulips or mums probably won't need any fertilizer -- they received all they needed for this year's growth from the grower -- and they have a fairly limited time in the spotlight. Flowers eventually turn brown and die back no matter what you do. Full sunlight in an area protected from drafts suits both plants. Cool temperatures -- about 65 degrees Fahrenheit -- helps extend growing time, as does moving the plants to an even cooler location -- 50 to 55 F -- in an enclosed porch, garage or basement at night. Keep the plants moist, but not soggy -- removing or poking holes in any foil wrap is a good idea to avoid rot.

Take Care of Your Mums

• As your mums start to fade, snipping off individual flowers as they die back can help the plant put more energy into regrowth and keep it looking greener longer. Once all the blooms have faded, snipping the plants off to within a few inches of the soil surface makes it easier to see just how many plants the grower loaded into the pot, and helps the mums grow back fuller. If the weather is cooperative -- past all danger of frost -- you can gently separate the plants and plant them out to the same depth as in the pot in full sun in rich, soil with good drainage. Where it's still too cold, you can pot the small mums individually and keep them in a cool, sunny location until you can plant them out.

Post-Bloom Tulips

• Tulips don't stick around indoors as long as mums, but their post-bloom care is easier. In U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9 and above, all that you have to do is add the fading plant to the compost pile -- tulips are unlikely to ever rebloom in warm climates. Elsewhere, as the petals drop, cutting off the flowers at the base of the stem keeps the plant from spending the energy that could go to storing energy for repeat bloom. While you can move the shorn plant to a less prominent -- but still sunny -- spot, keep the leathery, swordlike foliage green as long as possible with adequate water until the leaves are fully yellow. At that point, you can stop watering them and set the pot aside in a dark, cool area until late summer to fall, depending on your climate.

Mum's The Word -- Again

• In U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7 through 9, your replanted potted mums have the potential to bloom again in the fall, for at least a few years. In cooler zones, you need to get lucky with the weather to see fall bloom -- an early frost or a freeze can kill the buds before they get a chance to bloom. A layer of mulch in marginal zones can keep the roots from freezing so the plant returns again in the spring, though below zone 5 a potted chrysanthemum is unlikely to make it to next Easter.

Tulip Time -- Fingers Crossed

• Tulips should be removed from the pot in early to late fall depending on your climate, cleaned, and any bulbs with soft spots or other damage composted. Some pots can be packed with 20 or more bulbs depending on the size of the pot, so you may have more bulbs than you think to plant. Prepare an area in full sun to partial shade to a depth of 8 inches and mix in 2 tablespoons of bonemeal per bulb and a handful of 5-10-5 nitrogen-phosphorus-potassium granular fertilizer per cluster of three to five bulbs. While fertilizer helps boost the chances of reblooming, the stress of forcing can mean that the bulbs will take a few seasons to bloom again.