Forcing Bulbs for Indoor Bloom: Even 'Brownthumbers' Can Do It

Article by: Tom Schneider

Forcing Bulbs , Plants - Your New Roommate for Indoor , Ideas for Decorating Your Outdoor Patio Area Bloom

'Force' is such a strong word for making a plant , Healing Aloe Vera s Are Easy To Grow and Provide Health Benefits bloom out of season. , Growing Organic! Herbs, Flowers and Fruit 'Coaxing' is better, maybe even 'teasing', of course, 'fooling' won't do because we all know that Mother Nature , Cold Frame Greenhouse - Maximize The Natural Warmth Of The Sun will not be made light , US State Flags of. But as long as we understand her rhythms we can speed up the seasons , Enjoy Creating and Growing a Sustainable Garden While Feeding Your Family a bit, like nudging spring , Compost Tea – Tea Time For Your Garden into our homes , Florida s: Easy Landscaping and Curb Appeal during the bleakest of winters. , Find Peace And Happiness Through Gardening This is especially true, and easy, with bulbs, , Tulip s those remarkable self-contained flower , Solar Outdoor Lighting factories.

Choosing Your Bulbs

Most of our common hardy outdoor , Compost Tea – Tea Time For Your Garden bulbs are candidates for forcing: Tulips, , How to Choose a Pond or Fountain Light Crocus, Daffodils, Amaryllis, Paperwhite Narcissus, Muscari, Miniature Iris and Hyacinths. Select only top quality bulbs , Riding Lawnmower - Choices are Wide Open that are large and heavy for their size and are not soft or moldy. If you're not going to pot , Extreme Botany And The Glory of the Carnation right away store them in a mesh onion-like or a ventilated paper bag in your basement , US Flag History or the refrigerator crisper, any place , US Flag History where the temperature , Lawn Tractors - Buying the Right One stays below 65 degrees and the humidity is fairly high. And this is important: Never refrigerate bulbs , Ecological Landscape Design and Organic Lawn Care with fruit. , Gallica Roses The ethylene gas , The Perfect Yellow Roses for Your Home or Garden produced by ripening fruits , Annuals - 5 Easy To Grow Flowers destroys the bulb's flowering , Your Rose Garden Planting potential. (By the way, never store them in the freezer.)

It's a Timing Thing

First check your calendar. Most bulbs , The Perfect Yellow Roses for Your Home or Garden require 10 to 14 weeks in temperatures , Everybody Feng Shui Tonight - in the Garden below 48 degrees. This is their rooting period and it is absolutely essential if you expect flowers. , Your Rose Garden Planting The actual forcing, 2 to 4 weeks at around 60 degrees, follows the cooling stage.

Potting 'Em Up

Use clean pots , Enjoy Creating and Growing a Sustainable Garden While Feeding Your Family with drainage holes. The depth varies according to the size bulb , Some Great Ideas for Spring Patio Furniture you're forcing. You'll need 2 inches of soil , Five Key Factors that Affect your Potted Plants in Winter below the bulb , Annuals - 5 Easy To Grow Flowers in a container large enough for the bulb , Your Rose Garden Planting to be even with the rim when planted. Use a good soilless potting mixture and don't worry about fertilizer, all the bulb , Plants - Your New Roommate requires is contained inside. , Palm Trees

Place 2 inches of the mix in the pot, , US Flag History then set your bulbs. , Your Rose Garden Planting Mass them in, even touching each other is fine. Bulbs , Succulent Crassula Tetragona: Drought Tolerant Plants for Dry Garden Landscapes or Easy Houseplants are very friendly and love a party. But don't combine different kinds of bulbs , Growing Organic! Herbs, Flowers and Fruit because they have various cooling requirements.

Finish filling the pot, , Color in the Garden firming the soil , Palm Trees around the bulbs, , Riding Lawnmower - Choices are Wide Open then water , Your Rose Garden Planting well to settle the soil. , Solar Garden Lights And don't forget to include a label with the kind of bulb, , Color in the Garden the planting date and the day you want to take it out of storage.

Remember that bulbs , Do You Know About A Bamboo Orchid will flower , The Perfect Yellow Roses for Your Home or Garden about 2 to 4 weeks after being brought into warmer temps. So from the actual planting to flowering, , Japanese Plum Yew - Cephalotaxus Harringtonia 'Prostrata' ballpark it at 15 weeks.

Place the containers in a refrigerator, a cool spot in the basement, , Gardening - Growing Tasty Tomatoes a root , y, Fun Garden Plants cellar (like there are many of those left), a crawl space, cold , Japanese Plum Yew - Cephalotaxus Harringtonia 'Prostrata' frame, or better yet, outside , Landscaping for Wildlife if it stays below 45 degrees and does not freeze. Freezing doesn't harm bulbs , Enjoy Creating and Growing a Sustainable Garden While Feeding Your Family in the ground, of course, but it will slow down your forcing schedule.

The Forcing

When you take the bulbs , Palm Trees out of storage into warmth and light, , The Annual Pond Cleanout the growth of leaves and flowers , How to Grow Organic Cigar Tobacco is triggered. First transfer the pots , The Annual Pond Cleanout to a place , The Perfect Yellow Roses for Your Home or Garden with indirect sunlight and 60 degree temps for a week or two.

When the shoots are 4-6 inches tall, move the pots , Riding Lawnmower - Choices are Wide Open to a bright, sunny window , Ecological Landscape Design and Organic Lawn Care to stimulate the flowering , Compost Tea – Tea Time For Your Garden process. 68 degrees or so and lots of sunshine produce the best flowers. , How To Choose The Right Trees For Your Front Yard Landscaping Ideas When the buds , Landscaping for Wildlife show color , Growing Organic! Herbs, Flowers and Fruit move the pots , Patio Chair Covers to indirect light , y, Fun Garden Plants so the flowers , Best Florists Online last longer. If the flowers , Ideas for Decorating Your Outdoor Patio Area are coming on too fast, slow things down by moving the pot , Palm Trees out of the light , Lawn Care Tips - Six Easy Steps to a Great Lawn and into a cooler area.

During the forcing, keep the soil , Find Peace And Happiness Through Gardening moist.

Once a bulb , Find Peace And Happiness Through Gardening is forced throw it away. It may rebloom but it'll take a couple of years.

And that's it. Pretty easy, huh? All it takes is patience.

The Schedule

This timetable may help you plan , Best Florists Online but these are only guidelines. Bulbs, , Riding Lawnmower - Choices are Wide Open like most plants, , s - Your New Roommate can't read. In all cases the bulbs , Your Rose Garden Planting must be well rooted before forcing.

To flower , How to Grow Organic Cigar Tobacco in January, plant , Landscaping for Wildlife in September or early October.

Planting in mid-October will produce flowers , Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction To Hydroponics Gardening For Beginners (part 4) Environment in February and a late October or early November planting means flowers , Floral Arrangements in late winter. , How to Grow Organic Cigar Tobacco

The Easiest Bulbs , Lawn Care Tips - Six Easy Steps to a Great Lawn to Force

Paperwhite Narcissus is very popular, easy and grows , Landscaping for Wildlife in sand , How to Plant Shrubs or gravel. , Enjoy Creating and Growing a Sustainable Garden While Feeding Your Family They are also available pre-cooled.

Amaryllis are Christmas plants , Enjoy Creating and Growing a Sustainable Garden While Feeding Your Family and require no cooling, but plant , Growing Organic! Herbs, Flowers and Fruit in early November for holiday flowers. , Lawn Tractors - Buying the Right One

Crocus will flower , Japanese Plum Yew - Cephalotaxus Harringtonia 'Prostrata' after a 12-14 week rooting period and grow , Lawn Tractors - Buying the Right One in gravel , US Flag History and water. , Best Florists Online

Hyacinth require only 12 weeks and are easily forced in special 'hyacinth' vases with only water. , Everybody Feng Shui Tonight - in the Garden

Muscari need about 16 weeks and should be jammed together in the pot , US State Flags for the best show.

Iris reticulata are easy, needing about 15 weeks and excellent drainage.

Tulips must have at least 15 weeks. When planting tulips , Parsley: A Cook's Best Friend put the flat , Ideas for Decorating Your Outdoor Patio Area side facing the pot , Make A Good First Impression: Landscape Your Driveway rim. That way the large outer leaves will drape over the edge and not detract from the flowers. , Compost Tea – Tea Time For Your Garden

Daffodils require 12-14 weeks and lots of strong, bright light , Ideas for Decorating Your Outdoor Patio Area during forcing. Try the miniature varieties for the best results.

When horticulturist Tom Schneider isn't puttering in his garden , Find Peace And Happiness Through ing he is helping his wife, Deb, with their online , Parsley: A Cook's Best Friend machine embroidery design , Extreme Botany And The Glory of the Carnation business, Windstar Embroidery. Visit Tom and Deb for embroidered gifts and quality machine embroidery designs. , Do You Know About A Bamboo Orchid

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Forcing Bulbs for Indoor Bloom: Even 'Brownthumbers' Can Do It

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