4. Treated or Not
When buying tulips to plant in bulbs, take a look at the labeling and one of the first things that you’ll notice is the fact that you can buy either treated or untreated bulbs; this can be confusing for first-time gardeners who aren’t used to bulbous flowers or planting them, but you can rest assured that it’s not nearly as complicated as you might have thought at first.
The difference between treated and untreated bulbs is the conditions in which they were packed: Treated bulbs have been chilled down to the point where they go into a type of hibernation, and when packed into the soil their growth is activated much faster – directly – when compared to untreated bulbs.
It can almost be said that the untreated bulbs have to “wake up” to get to growth and flowering, while treated bulbs can get you there faster. Make sure which you have in order to estimate the flowering time right, at least more or less.