Greenly Garden
Get the app
EN

When to plant tulips in Cleveland: 22 October – 23 December

In Cleveland, tulip: plant from 22 October to about 23 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.

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 Cleveland: soil, season and weather

Nights then average below 0 °C in December–February; the coldest, January, averages -3.9 °C.

Planting22 October – 23 December
First autumn frost21 November
Coldest nightsJanuary, -3.9 °C
Soil back at 7 °C in spring16 March
Daylight10:50 on 22 October
Daylight at the winter solstice9:10

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

Tulip in Cleveland: 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 Cleveland the average daily temperature stays at 10 °C or lower for about 24 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 Cleveland the three warmest months bring about 325 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 earlier than Cleveland; the closest date is in Erie, 2 days earlier.

CityDistanceDateDifference
Detroit145 km8 October – 7 December14 days earlier
Erie151 km20 October – 22 December2 days earlier
Pittsburgh185 km10 October – 22 December12 days earlier
Ann Arbor191 km6 October – 30 November16 days earlier
Columbus203 km3 October – 25 December19 days earlier
Kitchener236 km26 September – 21 November26 days earlier

Where to buy tulip for planting in Cleveland

Planting stock goes into the ground from 22 October to about 23 December; buy it before that. Within 15 km of Cleveland OpenStreetMap lists 9 garden centres and 8 markets (collected 20 October 2026).

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Questions

When to plant tulips in Cleveland?

In Cleveland, tulip: plant from 22 October to about 23 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 Cleveland?

Last spring frost around 9 April, first autumn frost around 21 November.

Other crops in Cleveland, with their dates