Gardening: How to grow hyacinths for Christmas | Brian Kidd

Now is the time to plant them so they will be in flower at Christmas.

Traditionally hyacinths are planted in bowls without a hole in the base and bulb fibre is used instead of potting compost.

But the trouble with bulbs planted in bowls is that once the flowers and foliage is about a foot tall, the plants fall over.

This is very annoying. The reason is that bulb fibre is very light and tends to dry out quickly.

Have a go at this – a lovely job which children would like to help with.

Buy a five or six-inch diameter half-height clay pot with a hole in the base.

Soak the pot in water for an hour, let it dry out and then put some pieces of broken flower pot in the base and fill the pot to within three inches of the top with a good potting compost.

Put in three or five hyacinth bulbs all the same variety and fill the pot to where you see the ridge at the top making sure the noses of the bulbs are just above the surface of the compost.

Now water the pot’s contents well.

Hyacinths intended for Christmas flowering must be planted by September 14 and put somewhere cold and dark.

The garage floor is a good spot and a cardboard box put over the pot will keep the bulbs dark. Just mind you don’t trip over it.

Take regular peeks to make sure the pot is always moist and under these conditions the bulbs will produce a massive root. That’s the secret of success.

During the first week of December the pot can be brought indoors as long as the shoots are at least four to five inches long. If they are shorter, leave them for another week but make sure they are moist.

Once indoors give the plants lots of light but not in direct sunshine.

If you do this the yellow leaves will become green in about 10 days and on Christmas morning your room will be full of perfume. And when friends or family arrive, you can proudly tell them that you grew them!

Now, what about the children?

Buy a hyacinth vase and a prepared bulb so the youngsters can see the roots grow, followed by the leaves and flowers.

Remember, children like to see things happen quickly and you also won’t have to keep bulbs in hyacinth vases in the dark.

You may wonder why I didn't suggest planting red, white and blue together.

There is a reason and that is that mixed hyacinths flower at slightly different times.

But if you would like various colours, plant each bulb in a small pot so you can put the slow-growing bulb in a warmer place to encourage the flowers.

Just to finish, the recent rain has been very welcome, the only thing is the lawn needs cutting again... but at least it is green again.

THIS WEEK’S TOP TIP

Take rosemary and lavender cuttings. Side shoots five inches long. Trim off all leaves apart from one inch at the top and firm into seed-sowing compost adding 25 per cent sharp sand. Keep shaded. This is the best time to root them.