You can have the thrill of spring indoors, months before the garden awakens, by forcing hardy bulbs into flowers. It’s not at all difficult; all you have to do is put into practice a few facts already known about bulb growth.
Hardy bulbs require a period of darkness and cold (not necessarily freezing) before they will flower.
During this period, the flower bud, already inside the bulb, completes its development, and the roots form.
Once given this cold-dark treatment, the bulbs will soon pop out into bloom when brought into warmth and light.
Potting and Soil Preparation
The bulbs should be potted as soon as they are received in the fall. The pot size and number of bulbs in each will, of course, depend on the ultimate size the foliage and flower will develop.
The pot should have adequate drainage in the bottom, and to prevent the soil from washing down into the drainage crock, it is best to put in a thin layer of sand.
A good potting mixture for the bulbs is composed of two parts: loam, leaf mold, and sand.
When potting, the bulbs should not be forced into the soil; rather, place some soil on top of the drainage material, set the bulbs on this, and then fill to the desired depth. After watering, they are ready for their cold-dark storage.
Storing Potted Bulbs
There are many ways to store the potted bulbs, but the easiest is in a cold frame or trench about 18″ inches deep dug in the open garden.
The pots are put in the bottom of the trench, and soil is worked around them. When they push through, a covering is put over the pots to protect the new shoots.
This can be a 2-inch layer of sand or an empty pot inverted over the top. Then they are mulched with a generous layer of salt hay or stray, 6” to 8” inches deep. The mulch is to keep the pots from freezing in the ground. Without it, their removal would be difficult.
To keep the mulch from being blown away by winter winds, put a few shovelfuls of soil or some heavy sticks on top.
Finding individual pots in storage is much easier when a long label is inserted in each one, a label long enough to protrude above the straw mulch.
Timing and Watering During Forcing
If the pots were watered well before storing, no additional water should be needed until they are brought in for forcing.
The length of time they are left in storage depends on the particular bulb, but from 6 to 12 weeks is usually adequate.
When they are ready for removal, the roots will grow through the hole in the bottom of the pot.
Post-Bloom Care and Storage
Keep the pots watered during the forcing and blooming periods. When they are through blooming, the amount of water should be decreased until very little is being given.
After the foliage has yellowed and dried completely, the bulbs can be removed from the pots and stored for planting in the open ground the following fall.
New bulbs should be used for forcing each year, as hardy bulbs cannot be successfully forced in a second year. Too, only the best bulbs should be used for results that will warrant the extra care that goes into force.
44659 by Frank K. Balthis