How to Plant Indoor Hyacinths for Uplifting Color and Fragrance in Your Home During the Winter
Brighten the darkest days of winter with indoor hyacinths
January can feel a long way from spring, with bare borders, chilly days and little color to enjoy outdoors. But that doesn't mean your home has to feel the same. Indoor hyacinths are an uplifting way to bring color and fresh scent into your living space.
The secret to enjoying these beautiful blooms in the depths of winter is a little forward planning. You can plant hyacinth bulbs now and given the right conditions they will bloom profusely in late-January and February.
Planting hyacinths indoors is a rewarding project that doesn't require a garden or a great deal of space. Here's how to get started, and what you need to know to give your bulbs the best chance of flowering in winter. (And for a super spring-like pastel display, try these apricot passion hyacinth bulbs, from Burpee.)
Choosing the Right Hyacinth Bulbs
When you come to buy your bulbs, you'll see there are a vast number of hyacinth varieties to choose from.
You might also find there are two potential types of bulbs: prepared (sometimes also known as indoor) and unprepared. The difference is that prepared bulbs have already been heat-treated and chilled to encourage them to flower earlier than unprepared bulbs.
Unprepared hyacinth bulbs have not undergone this additional preparation, so they need a naturally cool period before they will flower. They are generally intended for planting outdoors in fall, but the good news is they can also flower indoors if given the right conditions.
They typically take longer to flower, making them less suitable if you're hoping for an early January display, but blooms will definitely be making an appearance by February.
Opt for pastel shades and warm colors to brighten the mood in winter. This cotton candy mix of hyacinths from Amazon is gorgeous.
How to Plant Hyacinths for Indoor Flowers
As I demonstrate in the video above, you can plant up indoor hyacinths in a wide range of ceramic or terracotta pots and bowls. I like to use vintage containers, but rustic pots would work just as well.
If your pot doesn't have drainage holes, add some horticultural charcoal, which you can find at Amazon, to the bottom. This will help to prevent the roots from getting waterlogged.
You can use regular potting compost for this kind of planting, but I prefer bulb fibre compost, or coco coir from Amazon, which is very similar.
I would also recommend a scoop, such as the Martha Stewart soil scoops from QVC, especially if you are potting up indoors, to keep your hands clean and mess to a minimum.
Fill your containers a little over half full with bulb compost, then place the bulbs close together with the tip pointing up and the roots facing down. Cover with a little more compost, then ensuring the tips are poking through I top them with fresh moss from the garden as I love the natural finish this gives to the pots.
You might want to consider wearing light gloves when handling the bulbs; these Martha Stewart gardening gloves from QVC are ideal.
How to Care for Indoor Hyacinth Pots
If your bulbs are not prepared, the next steps are crucial. Pots need to be put in a cold, dark place, such as an unheated garage or shed, for around 10–12 weeks.
The temperature should ideally remain around 40–48°F, and the compost should be kept lightly moist but never waterlogged.
Once shoots have started to emerge and reached 1.5in in height, you can move them into a brighter indoor spot to encourage flowering.
Bear in mind that timing can vary with the variety and growing conditions, so starting early is essential if you're hoping for flowers by late January or February.
What to Shop
Few things feel more uplifting in the depths of winter than the sight and scent of fresh flowers at home. Group several hyacinths together for a colorful seasonal display, or let a single flowering bulb bring a simple, fragrant touch to a bedside table or windowsill. It's an easy way to welcome a little of spring's magic indoors, weeks before it arrives outside.
Plus, it's simple to keep bulbs going long after winter with our guide on what to do with indoor hyacinths after flowering.
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