Every year, Oakbrook Center generously gives away all of the tulip bulbs that are planted around the mall. Not only can you receive free tulips, you can help People’s Resource Center as well.
Keep reading for all the details, including when and where the tulip giveaway event will be held as well as tips for what to do with your spent tulip bulbs when you get home.
Free Tulip Bulbs at Oakbrook Center with a Donation
Oakbrook Center has partnered with People’s Resource Center (PRC) and Brightview Landscape Services to combine the tulip giveaway with a drive-through donation for the PRC Food Pantry!
Receive a free bag of about 100 tulip bulbs with your donation of non-perishable food, diapers (infant and adult), wipes, and/or household cleaning products.
Most needed items:
- canned tuna and chicken
- peanut butter
- jelly
- canned vegetables
The drive-through donation event will take place on Friday, May 17, 2024 from 8:30 – 10:00 am (or while supplies last) in the Purple parking lot (2 Oakbrook Center on the north side of the center) in front of Lifetime Fitness. We are told that even though tulip season is quite a bit earlier this year, they will not be moving up the tulip giveaway date.
Tips and Procedure
Place your donations in your trunk before you leave your home. Then when you arrive, the staff at Oakbrook Center can easily gather your donation and place your free bag of tulip bulbs in your trunk contact free.
Look for the signs and cones. When you arrive at Oakbrook Center near Pinstripes and Lifetime Fitness, there will be security guards and cones to direct traffic.
When you arrive, pop your trunk. If your trunk doesn’t have a button inside your car, the Oakbrook Center staff will open your trunk and close it for you.
Stay in your vehicle at all times. Oakbrook Center has worked out all the details so the process can be easy and keep traffic flowing. No need to do anything but bring a donation and leave it in your trunk or backseat so it is accessible.
How to Store Tulip Bulbs
If you plant tulip bulbs right now the animals are much more likely to dig them up and eat them. The freshly dug dirt attracts animals and the roots won’t be established, making it really easy to take and eat. So we recommend that you wait until the fall to plant.
First, lay the tulips out to dry. Do not cut off the stem or leaves- letting the plant die back naturally allows the nutrients to go back into the bulb. You can lay them out in your garage, basement or tie and hang them. It’s best if you line them up without touching so the air can circulate around each one. Once the green part dies back and turns yellow, you can take it off and store the bulbs.
The best way to store them is in brown paper bags or boxes. Mix the bulbs with wood chips or wood shavings to absorb any moisture that could get into the bag. (If the moisture remains, the bulbs will rot and be worthless.) Place the paper bags in your basement or another dark, cool place until you are ready to plant before the ground freezes in the fall to be completely satisfied with your blooming tulips in the spring.
Enjoy!
Free Tulips at Oakbrook Mall with a Donation
Friday, May 17, 2024 | 8:30 – 10:00 am
Oakbrook Center
2 Oakbrook Center
Oak Brook, IL 60523
9 Comments. Leave new
I love this! Good to know! And I’m so glad you shared what to do with them next because I wouldn’t have had a clue!
This was fun and interesting. I met some very nice people while waiting for the drop of the tulips. All I met found out about this through facebook contacts. lol You did see the seasoned professionals there with their bins of all shapes and sizes and rubber gloves. lol I did bring a box and that worked great. When the truck started to dump by me I scoped out a pile. When the officer said it was good to go after the truck left I went to the pile with my box scooping up all I could. Then when I scooped as much of the pile in I shoved the rest of the pile in the box. There is a lot of mud so don’t were white shoes like I did. lol Be prepared to get a little dirty. I enjoyed this very much. A little boy was very enthralled with the two worms I found. lol Not sure about his mom though.
Thank you so much for the info and additional outing possibilities.
You’re welcome! :)
Do you know if they are going to do this again? We are helping a girl’s group home with a beautification project and something like this would be an amazing blessing for them!
Do you know if the mall is doing this again this year?
Thanks so much for the update, went last year for the first time and love to see the beautiful results this year.
Hi Annie,
Thank you so much for following up on the tulip drop information. Your blog is great!
You’re welcome! I hope you were able to get some bulbs. :)