Planting Bulbs

by Tom MacCubbin

Fall bulbs, often packaged with very promising pictures, are starting to arrive at local garden centers. Some require potting before they begin growth and many need weeks of a cold treatment in a refrigerator before they flower.

There are only a few you can simply plant and immediately watch them grow.

One of the really easy to grow bulbs is the paper white narcissus. Four or five bulbs fill a six inch container.

Add soil to the pot within an inch of the rim. Then push the bulbs into the soil so the tops are just below the surface. Keep the planting moist and in a sunny location to enjoy the fragrant blooms in four to six weeks.

Equally easy to grow are the large amaryllis bulbs that produce red, pink or white blossoms. Plant one bulb to a six inch pot. Add both the bulb and soil to the container at the same time to cover the roots and about three quarters of the bulb.
Leave the neck of the bulb above the soil. Keep the planted container in a sunny location and moisten as needed to enjoy a shoot with blooms in six weeks.

Gardeners who want the challenge of forcing tulips, hyacinths and daffodils into bloom from bulbs can use the following tips to produce the late winter color.

• Plant the bulbs in pots with the tips of the bulbs just be lower the surface of the soil.
• Moisten the containers and place them in a refrigerator for 10 to 12 weeks.
• Avoid adding fruits, vegetables or flowers to the refrigerator or the flower buds may be damaged within the bulbs.
• After the cold treatment, place the containers of bulbs in a sunny location to flower.
• Keep the soil moist by watering when the surface begins to dry to the touch.
• Feed the bulbs monthly with a house plant fertilizer when they begin growth.

SEE THE VIDEO HERE
dotted line
home
videos
stories
gardening
crafts
photos
contact
logo