May The Force Be With You

Last week I needed a touch of Spring in the house to combat the winter blahs. Unseasonably cold weather in the area made me long for warm April days back in North Carolina. As I stopped in the grocery store, I picked up some potted tulips to bring home to enjoy for a week or so. Now that the blooms have faded, it is time to put the bulbs to sleep so I can enjoy them again later.

Tulips, amaryllis, narcissus, daffodils and iris are all flowering bulbs. Normally, bulbs are plated into the ground in late fall or early winter and remain dormant until Spring when they begin to peak through the dirt. Bulbs can also be planted in pots to be enjoyed indoors. When the blooms spent, you can appreciate the blossoms again by "forcing" them to cycle again.

New or previously bloomed bulbs can be put in a brown paper bag for 12 weeks or more and placed in the vegetable drawer in the bottom of your refrigerator. After the sleep period, plant them in a grouping in a flowerpot with fresh soil with the root end down. Water well and place in a sunny, warm spot. In six to eight week, the bulbs should bloom once again, in all of their glory.