Seeing spring flowers up close is always a joyful experience – especially indoors in midwinter when all is cold and grey outside. Controlling growing conditions so that These are fleshy, rounded, underground storage organs, usually sold and planted while dormant. Examples include daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, lilies, onions and garlic. The term is often used to cover other underground storage organs, including corms, tubers and rhizomes.
bulbs flower earlier than they would naturally is known as ‘forcing’, and with a little experimentation you can persuade many bulbs to give a highly scented and colourful performance as early as Christmas.
Most bulbs need a chill period, to mimic having been through winter. You can buy ‘prepared’ hyacinth bulbs (temperature-treated to flower early) but for most other bulbs (including paper-white daffodils and Hippeastrum or amaryllis) a few weeks in a dark, cool shed or garage after potting-up is enough. Allow 6–10 weeks, depending on species, Gardeners often use the word variety when referring to a specific plant, but the correct botanical term is 'cultivar'. Whichever word you use, it means a distinctive plant or plants, given a specific cultivar name and usually bred to enhance certain characteristics, such as flower or fruit size, colour, flavour or fragrance, plant size, hardiness, disease resistance, etc. Additionally, it is worth knowing that, botanically, variety has another meaning - it refers to a naturally-occurring distinct plant that only has slight differences in its looks. For example, Malva alcea var. fastigiata differs from typical plants by having an upright habit.
cultivar and temperature, from planting to flowering.
Bulbs can be grown suspended in a narrow-necked vase of water (hyacinths work well this way), but for more impact use a bowl or wide pot and grow at least five bulbs in a group.
When the bulbs are ready to come indoors, keep them somewhere draught-free and not too hot (avoid a windowsill right above a radiator, for example). Cooler spots out of direct sunlight will encourage the leaves to green up, while a brighter position will accelerate blooming.