FLOWERS IN WINTER

Evening Star, Issue 22596, 13 March 1937, Page 24

FLOWERS IN WINTER

I am sorry to remind readers that the sinister shadow of winter looms ahead; but such is the case, and the wise gardener who likes a few cheerful flowers to keep him company during the long, dreary weeks to come must soon be making preparations for them. I think few flowers are more welcome in the home than those we force in pots and bowls during the winter. In the dark days of aspirin and influenza, when the garden is frost-bound and asleep,' surely few things are more delightful than the scent of hyacinths, and the. sight , of golden crocuses, which tell of lengthening days, and whisper a cheery message from the approaching spring. And they are so easy to grow if we do not kill them with kindness. I used the word “force,” but it is a. term which must not be taken too literally, for in truth very little forcing is required where spring bulbs are concerned. Let us first consider what happens to the bulbs we plant in the garden. It is a mistake to assume that they remain dormant and inactive till the spring arrives. Actually they are very busy during the early winter, building up a good root system/ and priming up their flower stems, so that when the signal comes they will be ready to send them up aloft to greet the sun. Sometimes they mistake the signs and poke their noses out too soon. I expect everyone has noticed how, in a mild July (January) or even before mid-winter, the- bulbs are already thrusting their spears above ground. This means that they are ready to be up and doing, and would soon be out if the weather remained mild and kindly. But it does not! It usually becomes much' colder, and the impatient bulbs must needs lie low for some months longer. But in our greenhouses and living rooms we can dispense with the .- long waiting period of late winter and early spring and encourage the flowers to come forth and show themselves. This does not mean hard forcing; they only ask for the moderate temperatures of October (April)—not the excessive' heat of mid-summer, which would distress father than favour them.

Let us then commence by “ hastening slowly ” and first give the bulbs an opportunity to build up their roots, and otherwise prepare for flowering. To pot them up and put them straight into a warm house would cause the flower stems and leaves to start into growth before the roots were there to support them, a proceeding which would bring but very poor results. In the first place the • bulbs should be procured as early as possible, and, if intended for ordinary flower pots, potted fairly firmly, with .the bulbs close together, as many as the pot can comfortably accommodate, and with their points just above the soil surface. Oldi potting soil or any porous mixture is suitable, and it should be well worked between the bulbs so that all vacant spaces are filled. It is important to leave about an inch of space at the top of the pot to accommodate the necessary water at flowering time. Give them a good watering after potting; stand' the pots out of doors — behind a north wall for preference—and! cover them over with a good depth of ashes, or a mixture of leaves and sandy soil, so that the tops of the pots are buried at least Bin deep. It is advisable to stand the pots on a of cinders, to prevent worms entering them from below. After this they may be forgotten till towards the end of April (November), by which time the pots will most likely be full of roots, when the first batch can be brought indoors, and gradually, not suddenly, introduced to the light and a rather warm atmosphere. During growth they must be afforded all the light possible, but not too much warmth; a temperature round about 50deg is usually quite enough. ;

Bulbs in bowls of fibre respond 'to similar conditions, except that they are not stood out of doors, but should be placed, for the rooting period, in a cool, dark cellar or shed and covered with leaves or litter of some kind. Fibre must never be allowed to get dry. Bowls having no drainage system, it is advisable to put a layer of charcoal under the fibre; and if at any time the fibre gets too wet it can be drained by pushing a pencil down the inside of the bowl to make a channel, and then leaving it tilted on its side for a time for the water to drain away.

I would suggest. that the pots or bowls be brought in at weekly intervals for flowering, starting 'at the end of April (November), in the following order:—Roman . hyacinths, paper white narcissus, miniature hyacinths, hyacinth I/Innocence, crocuses, narcissus (Emperor), hyacinths (large flowered), tulips (Duo van Thol varieties), narcissus (Yan Waveren’a Giant and King Alfred), scilla sibirrica, tulips (early flowering), muscaari (heavenly blue), tulip (Murillo), and narcissus (poeticus varieties). This list by no means exhausts the possibilities, but it should' be enough to provide a supply of flowers from mid-winter until they begin to appear out of doors. ' I am not suggesting that the whole of any one kind should be taken in at one time, but have merely tried to indicate the order in which they are likely to flower. For example, the Roman hyacinth arid the paper white narcissus can easily be |iad in flower for mid-winter ;

but not so the poeticus narcissus, however much you warm it up; hut there can be a good deal of overlapping, and it is quite easy to have hyacinths, daffodils, and tulips all in flower together, and. the last hatches need not be brought indoors till early September (March). Admittedly the earliest flowers are the most welcome; hut there is also joy in the later ones —Extract * Good Gardening.’-