Hyacinths behaving badly :(

Hi,
my hyacinth bulbs are not doing what they should be doing this year. I always plant three prepared bulbs in pots in October and leave them out (covered) until the buds appear shortly after Christmas.

This year I put them in the garage, and even though they have rooted well there is no sign of buds- the tops of the bulbs have signs of life but that's all.

What's wrong? Should I bring them indoors anyways or will they just produce leaves? If I take them in, do they still need dark cool spot seen how immature they are? Usually the bud showing ones just go on the windowsill and flower prettily in a light and warm room.

And btw- why do retailers sell Christmas bulbs so late that they never have a chance to bloom in time? Morrisons had their Amaryllis in last week of November and Wilkos Hyacinths appear in mid- to late October at best. Then again, I always rescue the unsold Wilko Amaryllis bulbs for a few pennies in January

Thanks!

 

Christmas bulbs?, no such thing IMO.
It's about forcing to flower at totally the wrong time of year.
Hyacinths need to be kept cool or even pretty cold until the flower buds are showing, bring them into the warmth and the leaves will out grow the flower stem.

I find they are best kept in a fairly cool porch for long flowering.

Cant see any benefit in keeping them in the dark other than to make them get leggy.

 

I agree totally Pete, forcing bulbs feels somewhat wrong... But my Christmas hyacinths have maybe more nostalgic value which overrides my appreciation of letting plants doing their own thing

Anyhow, the darkness part of my forced bulbs probably comes from my Nordic childhood where the only frost free cool place was the fridge. We always had the bulb pots in the fridge for around 10 weeks, covered with kitchen foil. I'm not sure if the foil was for the darkness or to prevent soil getting into our food. But every Christmas we had the lovely home grown hyacinths in full bloom filling the house with their lovely fragrance

Now in the lovely temperate climate of the UK I have been happy with January hyacinths, but this year it looks more like March display.... which is disappointing because in March there is already so much going on that the forced bulbs don't feel that special I think.

I'll take another look tomorrow, and if the bulbs look even a bit promising, I'll take one in in a cool place. I think you are right Pete, too much warmth will just make them leggy. Thanks

 

I think the warmest place is probably in my fridge at times also.

I do get what you mean about plants out of season being that bit special.
Have to admit after trying growing them myself from prepared bulbs, I've given up trying for Christmas.
If I want them for Christmas I usually buy a few already to flower a couple of weeks before.

As a side line, I do think the fridge idea is a good one, a constant cool temperature and would perhaps work on non prepared bulbs well.
I think in some warm countries, with no winter, it is a way of getting all kinds of bulbs to flower Some experimenting to get the timing right would be needed though.

 

Yes, I can confirm that it does. I've done it several times now, when I couldn't find prepared bulbs for my hyacinth glasses. I found advice on how to do it on this excellent blog about hyacinths, and hyacinth glasses, scroll down the page for details: FAQs | garden withindoors

She recommends six weeks, I have got away with doing it for four. I just put the dry bulbs in the veg drawer of the fridge, wrapped up in some fleece in a plastic box, but do check them every so often to make sure no damp has got in to rot them. Then they go into their water-filled glasses and are placed in a dark cupboard in the shed. Having them ready for Christmas is a bit hit and miss, depending as you say @Selleri on when you have been able to buy them! This year I brought them in on Christmas Day, with their flower heads visible but not yet in bloom. As she says, some varieties are more reliable than others - I like the multifloras, Woodstock has done well for me in the past, this year I am trying Anastasia for the first time.

 

Good info @Clare G

 

Thanks @Clare G , great link and info! I actually had a lightbulb moment reading the blog, usually I grow blue hyachinths but this year after some determined skandi redecoration I went for white ones. It could just be a different variety which explains the slowness this year rather than outdoors/ garage change.

Happy New Year everybody!