potted bulbs aren't growing

by Lisa
(Windam, NY)

Hello,

We planted many different flower bulbs recently - all the common sort that were recommended for this climate We follwed the directions on how to plant and how deep and how to water etc... It's been over 4 weeks now and the top of the pots show no sign of life... any idea what is wrong? Could it be that it isn't warm enough (but all our other seeds have started very nicely and our plants are growing well and every bush and flower is blooming here, and our grass needs cutting weekly and everything else is blooming and vibrant- though there have been some cold nights.) We live in the mountains - in the Catskills, NY, near Windam.. Could they be dud bulbs and we got ripped off? We got them at home depot, so that would be weird. Are they buried too deep? Do they need to be brought inside for warmth??? Really confused as to what we are doing wrong... Should we just wait some more? Or get new bulbs and try again?

Doug says that without knowing which bulbs you're trying to grow and how you're actually doing it, I have difficulty telling you what to do differently or answer your "why" question. "Following the directions" doesn't tell me anything if I don't have the same directions.

Having said that - if the bulbs were supposed to be grown in your area - were they spring flowering bulbs that had been stored over the winter (then they're probably dead)

Were they summer flowering bulbs that were fresh (then if none came up - you've messed up somehow - the odds on all the bulbs being dead are not good)

Did you freeze them outside? In containers, this might very well have killed them off (again depending on what you're trying to grow)

Start again or take them back to HD and ask for the guarantee.

Sorry I can't be of much help here but I don't have enough info.