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Monday, January 21, 2013

Indoor Flowering Bulbs for Winter Interest

Are you missing your beautiful flower garden and highly anticipating spring so you can get your fill of flowers? Here are some great ideas for indoor flowering plants that offer winter interest.

You can purchase a variety of bulbs (Tulips, Narcissus, Amaryllis) and follow these steps for care to have them bloom in the winter. If you already have bulbs planted in your garden that previously bloomed, you can dig them up and take them inside to force them into a dormant state. Most bulbs need at least four to six weeks before they can re-produce flowers. Just place them in a dark closest or storage room to let all foliage die back. But don’t forget where you put them!

When the bulbs are ready to bloom again you can place them in a glass container with rocks or other decorative materials and add water. Within the next seven to ten weeks, your bulbs will begin to shoot out new green leaves and eventually beautiful flower stalks. Deborah Hamilton, an avid gardener, said this about Amaryllis bulbs: “Watching something grow and bloom with flowers more than five inches wide during the dreariest part of the year can lift anyone's spirit. It’s also fun to see the water in the stem fluctuate when the light is bright enough.”
Deborah Hamilton's Amaryllis Bulbs
 Once the bulbs have finished flowering you can start again! Please feel free to post pictures of your blooming bulbs.

Wrtten by: Amanda Hamilton