Question
I live in Maryland.  On Nov. 1st, I planted 250 "late blooming" tulips to greet some end-of-May house guests.  Unfortunately, they've just started to bloom this weekend.  Is there anything I can do to preserve them for another 4 weeks, or were my plans made in vain?  

Answer
Christy, did you hear the one about this Gardener, he feels a little sick, so he goes to the Doctor.

Doctor looks at him, does some tests, and the guy goes home.  A few days go by, he's out working in the garden, and the doctor calls him and asks him to come in.

So this guy puts down his shovel, he goes over to the Doctor, he gets there and he waits.  Now the Doctor comes in, Doctor's looking very grave.  And Doctor says to the guy, 'I have Good News and I have Bad News.  Which would you like first?'

So the guy thinks for a second, and finally he says to the Doctor, 'Doc, Give me the Good News first.'

Doctor says, 'OK.  You have 2 days to live.'

This guy can't believe what he's hearing, he says to the Doctor, 'TWO DAYS?  I have TWO DAYS?  That's the GOOD news?  What's the BAD news?'

Doctor says, 'The bad news is, I forgot to call you yesterday.'

In your case however, Christy, there is no good news here.  Only bad news.

But I have to ask you something.  What made you think that in Maryland, your Late Blooming Tulips wouldn't open until May?

Because up here on Long Island, which is easily a week behind you in the gardening schedule, our Late Blooming Tulips are blooming away by the middle of May.  Mother's Day is the day the Iris open every year, and the Tulips open a good 5 to 7 days earlier.  Those are the long stemmed, 26 to 30 inch French Tulips, about as Late as Tulips come.  If we're lucky, we can cut them and get a Mother's Day Bouquet.  Late May?  Who told you Tulips bloom in Late May?

I just can't believe you see this down in Maryland.

Even without Global Warming those Tulips would not bloom a week before June.

Late May is Peony Season.  Perhaps Lilacs would bloom in Late May.  Roses are beginning to open.  Delphiniums.  Alliums, perhaps.

If you were going by a catalog schedule, bear in mind the catalog is printed probably for someone in northern Connecticut or similar cool zone.  Cooler, and later.

Christy, you should have asked me first!!!!

This being a spectacularly beautiful weekend, I imagine by now ALL those late bloomers are blooming their heads off.  Even now, though, I wonder what 'late' label you were looking at.  In your neighborhood, this is more like the middle of the Tulip Season.

There's no easy way to say this, Christy.  Just one of those things.

But think about this:

1.  You have learned a lot from this experience.  That's valuable.  Next time, you'll know.  And in telling this story to others, they'll know, too.

2.  Your houseguests will miss a really nice display.  Someday this might be funny.  Take pictures.  This is a good family story, one that goes down in family lore.  Like the one about my mother chasing the bus down the street so my sister could get on it to get to camp.  It's a story.  Don't feel too bad.

3.  Start putting Plan B into works.  Me, I say there is absolutely nothing but nothing like a Delphiniums show.  Place an order with Graceful Gardens over the phone and get a huge order delivered asap to bloom just in time for those guests of yours.  You can still wow them.  Believe me I know the feeling.

I wish I could dream up a kinder, gentler answer here, Christy.  It's not there.  But there are more choices here than you think.  And you have learned the mother of all lessons.  Like the Doctor said, I should have told you earlier.  Nice try, if only you'd asked.  But that's how it goes sometimes.  Get that garden into shape.  You have a little more than a month.  Good luck.  Keep me posted.  And thanks for writing.