garden withindoors

The weather has been so warm this year, the hyacinths are very early. I usually worry if I'll have any hyacinths in bloom for Christmas because they haven't started blooming, instead this year I worry if they've bloomed too early.

the sky-high amaryllis on the right on the windowsill, some bulb bowls in bloom, the Wedgwood hedgehog with some fat crocus which will be in bloom soon

closer view of the Wedgwood hedgehog with fat crocus shoots

my new kitten Rocky with some hyacinth vases

better view of the vases and bulb bowls

Davidson hyacinth bulb bowl and hyacinth vases, some improvised

latest hyacinths out of the cellar and a pot with some hyacinths in vases that turned out to be too small for the roots surrounded by crocus which i took out of vases to fill up the pot

it's usually my cat Victor who sits on the spreadsheet when I am trying to update it but this time, Rocky has decided to sit on the spreadsheet

the hyacinth stems are quite yellow when they first come out of the cellar but they green up after a few days in the daylight

the next two hyacinths are quite advanced, I usually bring them out of the dark before they get to this point but I found a box of hyacinths behind another box that I hadn't noticed so a few of them should have come out sooner

The amaryllis are growing like mad. I bought 4 bulbs but found that 2 of my vases I was planning to grow them in were not large enough so had to use pots. I only started the two in pots later so they are not tall and blooming like the the ones in vases which I started first.

the amaryllis have gotten so tall, difficult to take a photo

I was in the cellar for something else the other day when I noticed how developed the hyacinths were and realised some really needed to come out of the dark into the light. The stems look anemic until they've had a couple days in the light and they start to green up.

Most of the hyacinths ready this early are Woodstock and Aqua. I have not tried Aqua before so curious to see how they perform.

The bulb forcing season has started. I just got my bulbs delivered from Peter Nyssen and bought a few larger bulbs from Camden Garden Centre as I have a few vases that need the largest bulbs possible. I put a hyacinth bulb in each vase, filled with water to just below the bulb and put them in the cellar in the dark. I will check them in 6 to 8 weeks and see how they're doing.

these vases and the Davidson bulb bowl require the largest hyacinth bulbs

You don't need to use an "official" hyacinth vase; any vase / jar / bottle that holds a hyacinth bulb above water can be used for forcing. I am using this antique pickle jar. I find these can be a bargain on ebay - who's using these anymore for pickles!?

Woodstock hyacinth bulbs in uranium Tye hyacinth vases,

early Spring crocus / species crocus in bloom

Only 1 species / early spring crocus in bloom in the crocus vases, quite disappointed with these this year. I've had more in bloom in the past. The large Dutch crocus have been much better this year, maybe I should stick with those.

amaryllis in bud and bloom, in amaryllis vases (look like giant hyacinth vases) and one in a vase that works as an amaryllis vase

final hyacinths, Delft Blue and Aiolos

Jeffrey, my black cat visitor, on the desk and the final hyacinths on the windowsill

closer view of the hyacinths

two of those hyacinths above have rotted buds and will not be blooming

We're coming to the end of the forced hyacinths but a few are still in bloom and a few more to come but only a few. One of the final hyacinths with two stems, some large Dutch crocus in bloom and a few muscari.

a closer view of that hyacinth and crocus

These were the last group on the mantel.

this new hyacinth has two stems

Not sure those vases on the right will bloom but I'll give them a week or so.

a few days later and some of those hyacinths have bloomed nicely, the blue vase is actually a different one than the one above

the hyacinths in the bulb bowl are looking good - after they were moved in a better bowl - one with a proper lid that doesn't hold the bulbs too far from the water

those final hyacinths in bud, I'll have to see if they actually bloom

more crocus blooms every day in the Wedgwood hedgehog

onto the next phase of hyacinth blooms

an amazing Sky Jacket hyacinth which has now filled out (after initially being quite small and sparse) next to one that hasn't done nearly as well; other hyacinths still in bud

two other smaller Sky Jacket hyacinths, Woodstock hyacinth behind

the last bulb bowl in the cellar

I turned the bulbs over to see their root development - there was none, no wonder there's so little stem growth

This is the lid to the bulb bowl, it sits on top of the bowl rather than in the bowl on a ledge like the others, so I'm wondering if the bulbs being that much further from the water prevented root growth, otherwise why no roots on any of the bulbs? Bulbs do grow unevenly but none in this bowl have rooted so it must be something about the bowl.

I've put those bulbs in a different, more conventional, bulb bowl and after a couple days, there are roots starting, whether they have time to bloom, I'm not sure but at least they have a better chance.

a couple weeks later, the bulbs in the bowl above are growing well (see below), the other hyacinths below are late out of the cellar and not sure they are going to bloom this year

more crocus in bloom everyday in the Wedgwood hedgehog

the next hyacinths with fat buds

more crocus bulbs starting to bloom in the Wedgwood hedgehog