Today we are going to talk more about bulb planting, but this time indoor bulbs, not spring flowering bulbs. In particular, paperwhites and amaryllis. Both of these varieties are grown indoors during the holiday season and you can save them and revive them year after year. Read on.
Here we have three pots from last year. The pot at the top and the one on the right have amaryllis bulbs and the pot in the lower left of the picture has paperwhite bulbs. These were all very pretty last year. Let's hope they are equally as pretty this year.
When the blooms were done last year, we cut off the dead flowers. Then we placed the pots in an obscure place in the basement to let the plants go dormant. A dry, cool and dark space is a perfect place to keep the bulbs until you are ready to force them. We did not cut back any of the foliage, but let it die back naturally. The live foliage continued to provide nutrients to the bulb making it possible for the plant to come back again this year. You can move the pots outdoors during the summer months and bring them back in usually in October, but this is not necessary. What you want to make sure is that you do not allow amaryllis or paperwhite bulbs to freeze. These bulbs are different from the spring flowering bulbs we all plant outdoors in the fall.
When we brought them up from the basement a couple weeks ago, we cut off all the dead foliage from the previous year.
Then I added a little Miracle-Gro Indoor Plant Food to each pot. This is a foaming plant food which is very easy to use.
A couple pumps of the foaming plant food in each container and then a good healthy watering.
When watering bulbs, you may water from the top adding the water only to the soil. Do not pour water over the bulbs as it will drain into the bulb and can cause the bulb to rot. The better way to water your bulbs is to sit the pots in a vat of water that comes about halfway up the side of the pot and let the bulbs pull in the water they require through the root system. That is why planting them in pots with a hole in the bottom is essential. Watering like this once per week should be enough. In 4-8 weeks, you should have beautiful blooms for the holiday season or to brighten your home during the cold months of winter. We started these a little late to have for Christmas or for the New Year, but that is OK. I enjoy watching them grow and later on, when the very worst of winter is upon us, we will have beautiful blooms to brighten our home.
Here we have three pots from last year. The pot at the top and the one on the right have amaryllis bulbs and the pot in the lower left of the picture has paperwhite bulbs. These were all very pretty last year. Let's hope they are equally as pretty this year.
When the blooms were done last year, we cut off the dead flowers. Then we placed the pots in an obscure place in the basement to let the plants go dormant. A dry, cool and dark space is a perfect place to keep the bulbs until you are ready to force them. We did not cut back any of the foliage, but let it die back naturally. The live foliage continued to provide nutrients to the bulb making it possible for the plant to come back again this year. You can move the pots outdoors during the summer months and bring them back in usually in October, but this is not necessary. What you want to make sure is that you do not allow amaryllis or paperwhite bulbs to freeze. These bulbs are different from the spring flowering bulbs we all plant outdoors in the fall.
When we brought them up from the basement a couple weeks ago, we cut off all the dead foliage from the previous year.
Then I added a little Miracle-Gro Indoor Plant Food to each pot. This is a foaming plant food which is very easy to use.
A couple pumps of the foaming plant food in each container and then a good healthy watering.
When watering bulbs, you may water from the top adding the water only to the soil. Do not pour water over the bulbs as it will drain into the bulb and can cause the bulb to rot. The better way to water your bulbs is to sit the pots in a vat of water that comes about halfway up the side of the pot and let the bulbs pull in the water they require through the root system. That is why planting them in pots with a hole in the bottom is essential. Watering like this once per week should be enough. In 4-8 weeks, you should have beautiful blooms for the holiday season or to brighten your home during the cold months of winter. We started these a little late to have for Christmas or for the New Year, but that is OK. I enjoy watching them grow and later on, when the very worst of winter is upon us, we will have beautiful blooms to brighten our home.
