Tuesday, January 27, 2009

More like meatballs than drumsticks...

My hyacinths are blooming!


Not quite as I had envisioned with very thick stalks and perfectly arranged tiny trumpet florets. No, these are squatty, malformed, stuffed down in the foliage blooms. But they are bright and their fragrance is wonderful.

Fortunately, I discovered that the lack of proper form has nothing to do with my gardening technique!

This weekend, I was sorting through a festering pile of paper that had gathered on the counter and came across a pamphlet that I picked up when I bought the bulbs. (So now you know that the pile has been "gathering" since October!) I decided to look through it for any ideas for next year's crop, and it turns out that some bulbs have to have a winter. Not just a cold spell, but a looooong cold spell. Although my hyacinths had been labeled as "prepared for forcing", they had not been prepared long enough. The pamphlet said so!

Too short cold preparation = short stalks.

Too long preparation = long spindly stalks.

Naturally, my hyacinths began to bloom at the same time as the grocery store began to display pots of perfectly formed hyacinths in full bloom! So much for "forcing"! Apparently, they bloom on their schedule, not mine! Oh well, it has been fun to be able to watch the progress.

And the kitchen smells divine!





2 comments:

Iron Needles said...

I saw some already blooming in the store Sunday, but didn't buy. Just too tortuous having spring soooo far away!

Anonymous said...

Looks like the winter here is perfect for those blooms!! WS