HyacinthsPlanting
Planting Hyacinth Bulbs for the Most Beautiful Flowers. Reindert Explains Everything.
Planting hyacinth bulbs. The most wonderful time of the year, aside from the blooming period of course… When you plant hyacinth bulbs, get ready for a summer of enjoyment. Delicious sweet aromas, colors to fall in love with, and plenty of moments to relax. Reindert ensures you lack nothing during your journey from bulb to flower. He will teach you to cultivate like a farmer, resulting in a garden with the world's most beautiful hyacinths. So, read on quickly and learn to plant hyacinth bulbs with the confidence of a farmer.
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Meet the hyacinth specialist. Your guide in the world of flower bulbs.
1. Planting Period – In which period can you plant hyacinth bulbs?
You can plant hyacinth bulbs from September to December. However, keep in mind that you should only plant hyacinths until the first frost arrives. If you plant them after that, they probably won't come out (well). They emerge in March and then bloom through April.
TIP: When planting hyacinth bulbs, pay close attention to the planting period. Especially note that it's better to plant the bulbs earlier in the planting period than to wait until the last moment. If you plant the bulbs early enough, they still have plenty of time to establish good roots. This way, you can be almost certain they will survive the winter.
2. Planting Location for Hyacinth Bulbs – What's the Best Spot in Your Garden?
In your garden, you can plant hyacinth bulbs in a sunny or partial shade spot. Your plants don't need to be constantly in full sun, but it's advisable to choose a slightly sunnier spot.
TIP: Spring bloomers, including hyacinths, always grow earlier than most other garden plants. When planting hyacinth bulbs, you hardly need to pay attention to the distance from other garden plants. Now, that's easy gardening, isn't it?
3. Planting Hyacinth Bulbs in Well-Drained Soil – How Wet or Dry Should the Soil Be?
Planting hyacinth bulbs is best done in well-drained soil. After rainfall, there should be absolutely no standing water. This applies to all bulb plants, as standing water can cause rot in your bulbs (and spoil your spring a bit...).
TIP: Planting hyacinth bulbs should not be done in soil that is too wet. But it shouldn't be too dry either... It's all about balance. If it's too wet, your bulbs will rot. If it's too dry, well, they'll dry out...
4. Loosening the soil – How do we prepare the soil for planting hyacinth bulbs?
First, loosen the soil. Then you can plant the hyacinth bulbs. The soil must be 'airy' enough so that your bulbs can root properly.
TIP: Farmers prefer to plant hyacinth bulbs in slightly loose (not too heavy) soil. For example, if you have clay soil in your garden, mix in some extra soil or sand.
5. Fertilization and planting hyacinth bulbs - How much nutrition can you give during planting?
Planting hyacinth bulbs can be done without fertilization! Do you think your garden (and bulbs) could use some extra nutrition? Then read the tip below.
TIP: When planting hyacinth bulbs, but you're unsure if there's enough nutrition in your soil? Then explore your garden and check if there's enough nutrition in your soil. Do you have a lot of organic material in the soil? Do you already have many plants growing and thriving? These are often promising signs that there's enough nutrition in your soil.
6. The distance between each bulb – What spacing should you maintain when planting hyacinth bulbs?
You can plant hyacinth bulbs approximately 15 to 20 cm apart. This way, you'll create a sea of flowers, full of color, without any bare spots between your plants.
TIP: One fist-width of an adult is approximately +/- 10 cm.
7. The depth of the hole - How deep can (should...) you plant hyacinth bulbs?
Planting hyacinth bulbs is allowed at a depth of approximately 15 to 20 cm. Indeed, the same as the planting distance. Nice and easy.
TIP: Not a tip, but good to know. Planting hyacinth bulbs slightly less deep is also allowed, but we do not recommend it. Why? If it gets really cold in winter, your bulbs may freeze. So, better safe than sorry, and give yourself some margin for error to still get the most beautiful hyacinths.
8. Position of the bulb in the hole – How should you plant hyacinth bulbs?
Hyacinths have a pointed and a rounded side. Indeed, quite funny; 'a rounded side', because it's a flower bulb... What matters, however, is that we plant hyacinth bulbs with the pointed side facing upwards. If you plant the bulbs upside down, it will cost your plants extra energy to grow upwards. Energy that unfortunately won't go towards the growth of beautiful flowers. And that, we must prevent at all costs.
TIP 1: When planting hyacinth bulbs, ensure that the bulbs are completely covered with soil. If you see the bulb after planting and water it, then sprinkle some extra soil on top.
TIP 2: If there is even a slight suspicion of a severe winter, cover your planted bulbs. By this, we mean that you should sprinkle some organic material, such as straw or autumn leaves, over them. Doing this is like putting a blanket over your bulbs. It's not mandatory, but highly recommended.
9. How much water should we give when planting hyacinth bulbs?
When planting hyacinth bulbs, make the planting hole lightly moist before placing the bulbs in it. This helps your bulbs to adjust more quickly to their new home and thus to root more rapidly.
TIP 1: Planting (and caring for) hyacinth bulbs is best done with rainwater or, for example, ditch water. Tap water can still be used fine. However, it contains more minerals and lime. Not ideal when planting hyacinth bulbs that should give the world's most beautiful flowers.
TIP 2: Not a tip, but fun to know. When planting and later caring for hyacinth bulbs, you will not have to deal with slugs or other insects. Furthermore, caring for hyacinths requires little attention from you. When planted in the ground, natural rainfall is often sufficient. When asked what else you need to do for care, farmer Lucas said, "Nothing. Just enjoy." However, there are (secretly) a few points to keep in mind. He will explain these to you in the next article.
Yesss! You've reached the end of the article 'planting hyacinth bulbs'. You've put in the effort to learn all of this, so you deserve a big compliment. Even better, you've treated yourself to a garden with the world's most beautiful hyacinths. From now on, planting hyacinth bulbs will be effortless for you.
If you still have questions after reading this article, feel free to ask Reindert and us via the contact form below. Bet you can get even more beautiful flowers? Dive quickly into all the other articles and learn everything you need to know.
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