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When to plant tulips in Cedar Rapids: 25 September – 25 November

In Cedar Rapids, tulip: plant from 25 September to about 25 November. For planting stock, the places nearby include Walmart Garden Center (garden centre, 3 km) and Frontier Garden Center (garden centre, 8 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 Cedar Rapids: soil, season and weather

Nights then average below 0 °C in December–March; the coldest, January, averages -10 °C.

Planting25 September – 25 November
First autumn frost25 October
Coldest nightsJanuary, -10 °C
Soil back at 7 °C in spring18 March
Daylight12:04 on 25 September
Daylight at the winter solstice9:07

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

Tulip in Cedar Rapids: 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 Cedar Rapids the average daily temperature stays at 10 °C or lower for about 25 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 Cedar Rapids the three warmest months bring about 289 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 Cedar Rapids; the closest date is in Des Moines, 2 days later.

CityDistanceDateDifference
Davenport100 km30 September – 30 November5 days later
Des Moines165 km27 September – 29 November2 days later
Rockford219 km28 September – 25 November3 days later
Madison224 km27 September – 20 November2 days later
Peoria224 km1 October – 9 December6 days later
Springfield295 km2 October – 22 December7 days later

Where to buy tulip for planting in Cedar Rapids

Planting stock goes into the ground from 25 September to about 25 November; buy it before that. Within 15 km of Cedar Rapids OpenStreetMap lists 5 garden centres, 3 markets and 1 farm shop (collected 28 October 2026).

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Questions

When to plant tulips in Cedar Rapids?

In Cedar Rapids, tulip: plant from 25 September to about 25 November. 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 Cedar Rapids?

Last spring frost around 22 April, first autumn frost around 25 October.

Other crops in Cedar Rapids, with their dates