Can i plant hyacinth bulbs in the spring

Then plant the bulbs into the ground during December or January provided your growing zone lends itself to cooler, but not cold or frozen, temperatures throughout winter. The ground must be soft enough to dig adequate holes at least 4 inches deep. Once planted, your new blossoms should arrive between February and April, again depending on your growing zone and warming temperatures.

This refrigeration method helps the bulbs avoid extreme weather swings that directly impede blossom formation. Do not go overboard and place them in the freezer, which could damage the developing blossoms with ice crystals. If you stored your spring bulb purchase in a cabinet and forgot to plant or chill the bulbs in the fall, you still need to plant them by the following February or March. Hyacinth bulbs are hardy and remain viable after a long storage period, but they cannot survive an entire year out of the soil.

Although you may not see the prolific bloom you wanted this season, planting the bulbs allows the hyacinth to grow some roots until summer dormancy and retain nutrients for next year's blossoming. Home Guides Garden Gardening. Beside above, do hyacinths like sun or shade? Sun or Shade : For the largest flowers and straightest stems, plant your hyacinths in full sun. The bulbs will also flower in light shade or half-day sun. Hardiness Zone: Hyacinths are winter hardy in growing zones In warmer climates, the bulbs need to be pre-chilled before planting.

Hyacinth bulbs may be forced into early growth for indoor display in the winter. Plant them with the tips just showing, in soil-based potting mix in containers with drainage holes. After flowering , forced hyacinths may be transplanted to the garden and they will flower again in subsequent years. The best time to transplant spring bulbs is in summer or fall, once the foliage has sufficiently died back.

Flowering spring bulbs gather energy for next year's blooms through their foliage. Once the plants have died back, it is then safe to dig for the bulbs and transplant them into their new growing locations. Yes, they produce offshoots that can be removed during the dormant season.

The dormant season for hyacinths is summer. The best way is to dig up your hyacinths and remove the offshoots and place the parent bulb right back into the ground. You can either plant the offshoots at that time or wait until later. It's important not to dig up your hyacinth bulbs at the wrong time, or else your bulbs may not have enough energy to sprout. When the soil has dried out , carefully dig up the bulb and remove the dead foliage.

Curing hyacinths is very easy. Lay the bulbs out on a newspaper in a cool, dark place for three days. Transplanting to Your Garden Fertilize your potted hyacinth once during the bloom, and once after the flowers have faded.

Water regularly until the foliage turns yellow, and then let the pot go dry. Allow the foliage to die back naturally, but cut back the wilted flowers with scissors to support bulb vigor. If your hyacinths have already finished flowering, cut off the flower spikes so they do not put any energy into making seeds.

Although these plants are intended for growing indoors , they will grow perfectly well outside , flowering in March and early April and cheerfully reappearing year after year.

Container plants that have been previously forced into bloom cannot be forced again; however, you can plant bulbs in the garden. If you plan to replant these forced bulbs outdoors, sprinkle a small amount of bulb boosting fertilizer on top of the soil, as most will not flower well again without some help. Toxicity to pets Severe poisoning from hyacinth or tulip poisoning is often seen when dogs dig up freshly planted bulbs or having access to a large bag of them.

When the plant parts or bulbs are chewed or ingested, it can result in tissue irritation to the mouth and esophagus. When planting in pots—either plastic or clay will do, with good drainage on either—hyacinth bulbs can be spaced more closely than when planting in the ground because the bulbs won't need room to multiply.

You can squeeze them in so they are almost touching, but leave room for some soil in between to hold water. Keep the soil damp but not soaking wet until the bulbs sprout.

Then, water whenever the soil dries out. Once the bulbs have sprouted, move them to indirect sunlight. Cool temperatures will keep them in bloom longer. If you are potting hyacinth indoors for forcing early blooms, you will either need to purchase pre-chilled bulbs or pre-chill them yourself. They can then be nestled in gravel or placed into bulb forcing jars.

All kinds of rodents will munch on hyacinth bulbs. You can protect them somewhat by throwing a handful of gravel into the planting hole, or you can try commercial rodent deterrents. An easier method is to interplant them with daffodils , which rodents tend to avoid. Hyacinth bulbs are generally low-maintenance and bloom quite easily on their own in the spring. That being said, you can give yours a leg up by cutting down the stalk when this year's blooms fade.

Then, when its leaves turn yellow, cut them away as well. Feed them once bloomed, and again in August, to give them a boost for the following spring. The hyacinth is a reliable plant that will give you several years of aromatic blooms, but occasionally there are unfortunate issues.

If you've had a late frost, this can happen and, sadly, there is not much you can do about it. This can be caused by mosaic virus, which also can cause mottled leaves. Infected plants will need to be dug up and thrown away.

Sterilize any tools you use to do this: they, too, can spread the disease. Simply plant your bulbs in the fall and they'll bloom in the spring. Doesn't get much easier than that! Hyacinth bulbs live for three to four years, and in their later years their blooms may be more sparse.

Hyacinth Hyacinthus and grape hyacinth Muscari look like similar plants, but they are different species. Hyacinth has large, spiky petals while grape hyacinth's are smaller, with bell-shaped flowers.

Wisdom, Michelle M. HortScience , 54,10,, , doi University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile.