Greenly Garden
Get the app
EN

When to plant tulips in Allentown: 4 October – 30 December

In Allentown, tulip: plant from 4 October to about 30 December. For planting stock, the places nearby include Dominican Produce (farm shop, 2 km) and Saab Farmers Market (farm shop, 4 km); addresses and opening hours are below.

Bulbs are best planted early in the window: late-planted bulbs may flower later or less well. Late planting works only while the soil can be dug. Mulch after planting.

The date is about two weeks before the average daily temperature here falls below 0 °C (ten years of weather): an estimate, not the day the ground freezes, and a cold spell can freeze it earlier. Sources: Iowa State University Extension, Wisconsin Horticulture Extension, UNH Extension, RHS, how the ground freezes (NRC Canada, CBD-26).

Tulip in Allentown: soil, season and weather

Nights then average below 0 °C in December–February; the coldest, January, averages -4 °C.

Planting4 October – 30 December
First autumn frost3 November
Coldest nightsJanuary, -4 °C
Soil back at 7 °C in spring13 March
Daylight11:40 on 4 October
Daylight at the winter solstice9:16

The same dates in Allentown hold for Garlic, Daffodil, Crocus and Hyacinth.

Tulip in Allentown: depth, winter cold, pests and pets

Plant tulips at a depth of two to three times the bulb’s height, at least twice the bulb’s width apart, pointed end up (RHS). Where winters are very cold, tulips benefit from deeper planting to protect them from frost penetrating the soil (RHS); here the average daily temperature drops below 0 °C in winter.

In Allentown the average daily temperature stays at 10 °C or lower for about 23 weeks a year (our estimate from ten years of monthly weather). For this bulb Wisconsin Horticulture Extension gives a cold period of 15–17 weeks at about 2–10 °C. The winter here gives that in the ground, so the bulbs need no pre-chilling.

Border tulips often fail to flower in their second year if left in the ground, so many gardeners grow them for one spring and plant fresh bulbs each autumn; Darwin hybrid and Kaufmanniana tulips reflower more reliably (RHS). Soils that stay wet in summer make reflowering difficult (RHS): in Allentown the three warmest months bring about 353 mm of rain together.

Grey squirrels often dig up tulip bulbs: lay chicken wire over the bed until the leaves appear, or plant daffodils among them, which squirrels avoid (RHS). Tulips are toxic to dogs, cats and horses, the bulb most of all (ASPCA).

Sources: RHS, Wisconsin Horticulture Extension, ASPCA.

Tulip in nearby cities

All the nearest cities on our list plant tulip later than Allentown; the closest date is in Philadelphia, 8 days later.

CityDistanceDateDifference
Trenton73 km13 October – end of December9 days later
Philadelphia77 km12 October – end of December8 days later
New York125 km21 October – end of December17 days later
Dover160 km27 October – end of December23 days later
Atlantic City165 km23 October – end of December19 days later
Baltimore175 km23 October – end of December19 days later

Where to buy tulip for planting in Allentown

Planting stock goes into the ground from 4 October to about 30 December; buy it before that. Within 15 km of Allentown OpenStreetMap lists 14 garden centres, 1 plant nursery, 6 markets and 7 farm shops (collected 29 October 2026).

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Questions

When to plant tulips in Allentown?

In Allentown, tulip: plant from 4 October to about 30 December. Bulbs are best planted early in the window: late-planted bulbs may flower later or less well. Late planting works only while the soil can be dug. Mulch after planting.

When is the last spring frost in Allentown?

Last spring frost around 15 April, first autumn frost around 3 November.

Other crops in Allentown, with their dates