Forcing Bulbs Indoors
Recipe By: Sheila McDuffie
Ingredients
- Potting Up
- Here’s what you will need to plant your bulbs:
- Soil (1 part soil, 1 part peat, 1 part perlite or sand)
- Pots, pottery, vases
- Plant labels
- Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons playing in the background
Instructions
- Pot up mid-October to mid December, accounting for chill times.
- Fill the pot or container with soil to a level that will allow for the height of the bulb, the depth of planting and another 1″ for watering and adding moss later.
- Place the bulbs close but not touching and cover with soil. Do NOT press down on the soil or the bulb; just let the watering settle everything in.
- Label with the plant name and the date to bring the pots indoors.
- Place in a dark spot. Chill at 35-48F, keeping the pots watered as needed.
- When the bulbs start showing shoots, bring indoors and place in a cool room with indirect sunlight.
- As the flowers start to appear, move to bright light. Rotate the pots daily to keep stems upright.
- Adding moss around the base of the stems really sets the bulbs off beautifully.
- If the stems become elongated and the flowers are toppling over, tie the leaves and stems with a ribbon or some raffia to a stick or bamboo cane.
Notes
If the bulb has a flat side (tulips and some daffodils), place that side facing out towards the rim of the pot, so that the leaves will form a border for the flowers.
Hyacinth bulbs can cause skin irritation, so use gloves when handling.
There are ways to chill the bulbs, such as burying them in the ground and covering with leaves and straw. The chance of damage from mice, deer, and voles is great and requires protecting the pots with wire mesh. Also, if the bulbs freeze they will not bloom. If you live in an area where the entire winter months remain between 35-48F, you are very lucky indeed for you can just store them in a shed or garage. My solution is to chill them in the refrigerator (no apples allowed because of ethylene gas!).
Hyacinth bulbs can cause skin irritation, so use gloves when handling.
There are ways to chill the bulbs, such as burying them in the ground and covering with leaves and straw. The chance of damage from mice, deer, and voles is great and requires protecting the pots with wire mesh. Also, if the bulbs freeze they will not bloom. If you live in an area where the entire winter months remain between 35-48F, you are very lucky indeed for you can just store them in a shed or garage. My solution is to chill them in the refrigerator (no apples allowed because of ethylene gas!).
Recipe by The Gardener Cook at https://www.thegardenercook.com/forcng-spring-bulbs/