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2009-11-21

2009-11-18

2009-11-05

Agriculture

Lifestyles

Saturday, October 17, 2009 12:00 PM

LINTNER: What do you want to talk about?

By AUDREY LINTNER, Blooming Dells

I’ll admit it; I’m totally uninspired this week. The sky is gray. The air is damp. Heck, even the yarn I’m working with is a boring color.

All of this leaves me sitting in front of the computer, flapping my finger against my mouth and going, “Bibble, bibble, bibble.”

My beef with winter? The lack of color. I can admire the stark beauty of bare tree limbs silhouetted against white winter clouds. I even can enjoy a nose-tingling walk through the snow — for about 10 minutes. Eventually, I find myself tired of the whole mess and longing for some green.

Fortunately, there is hope for snowbound plant fans. You can use force. I’m not talking Star Wars here, and I don’t mean going out and trying to threaten Mother Nature. I’m talking about forcing bulbs to bloom in the off-season.

There are quite a few plants suited to indoor forcing. With a little planning and effort, you can have an indoor garden that’s sure to be the envy of your flower-deprived friends. You also might have squirrels knocking on your windows looking for snacks, but it’s the price we pay for beauty.

Such mini bulbs as snowdrops or crocus can be forced, as can larger, more familiar indoor subjects like daffodils and hyacinths. The trick is in the handling. What you’re trying to do is create a sort of microclimate, an entire growing season squished down into a single pot over the space of a few weeks.

Start with your container of choice. A well-scrubbed plastic pot works just as well as a soaked clay pot. It’s a matter of personal preference. We’re at the prime time to plant bulbs for forcing, so hopefully you’ve got a few left from your fall planting spree.

Put some pieces of broken terra cotta over the drain holes, and then fill the pot with a moist mixture of sand, perlite, peat moss and potting soil. Plant your bulbs so that the tops are even with the rim of the pot. Some bulbs, like hyacinths, can be grown in a dish of plain old pebbles and water. Don’t expect to keep those for another go-around, though. They’re pretty well shot after one blooming, thanks to the lack of additional nutrients.

Once the planting is done, store your potted bulbs in a cellar or other place that’s cool and dark. An unheated garage or refrigerator will do, as long as the temperature is between 35 and 48 degrees. Water regularly over the next five weeks, and you should see roots snaking their way out of the container bottom.

In a few more weeks, you’ll see shoots popping out of the soil. Once they’re close to 3 inches tall, you can put them in a slightly warmer location with indirect light. As the buds develop, you can move your plants to a sunny windowsill and enjoy your winter flowers. After they fade, keep the bulbs (leaves intact) in cold storage until next fall when they can be replanted outdoors. They’ll eventually get back on schedule for years of future enjoyment.

And there you are — a bright spot in winter while the garden sleeps. Now, I think I’m going to switch to red yarn for a while. Go do something fun this weekend.

E-mail Audrey Lintner at gardenherald@hotmail.com

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LINTNER: What do you want to talk about?

By AUDREY LINTNER, Blooming Dells

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article | Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article |
Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.