There are a few little tricks that can helpto force crocuses to bloom in late autumn, winter and early spring, when frost and snowstorms reign outside. But in fact, these little tricks turn into not so little troubles about future beauties, especially if a certain flowering date is set. Even "experienced flower growers-forcers" do not always manage to grow crocuses by a specific date with 100% accuracy. Sometimes, from the bulbs of one variety planted in a pot, several bloom before the scheduled date, and several - later than the required time. Agree, it's a shame. How can this disappointment be avoided?
Crocus flower
Crocus flower care Selecting bulbs In order for crocuses to bloom simultaneously to a certain date, the first thing you need is:
- choose the right variety.It is very difficult to make late varieties of crocuses bloom early (by Catholic Christmas or by New Year) and early varieties bloom late (by May 1) at home. In addition, it is better to give preference to large-flowered varieties; small-flowered (botanical) varieties of crocuses will look as impressive at the time of flowering as on colorful packaging only if you examine them through a magnifying glass;
- abandon the "mixture" of varieties and plantin one pot bulbs of one variety. Different varieties of crocuses have different heights (low flowers will simply drown and get lost in the leaves of tall ones) and different flowering periods;
- plant bulbs (of the same variety) in one potsame size — when planting «different-sized» bulbs, they will most likely not bloom at the same time. Large bulbs will bloom a few days earlier than small ones.
Crocuses of two groups are most often used for forcing.– large-flowered and golden-flowered. What they have in common is that the leaves appear before the flowers. We recommend choosing large-flowered Dutch hybrids, as there are almost never any difficulties with forcing them. Golden-flowered crocuses are more difficult to force out, as the buds often dry up in the leaves without even opening. Bulbs of large-flowered (Dutch) crocuses and golden-flowered crocuses can be found for sale from mid-August to January. But it is best to buy them at the very beginning of the season - until the second ten days of September, since the bulbs of the "first batch" are the most worthy: large, dense, without damaged protective scales. Drying and coolingFor early forcing (for flowering in December-January), after purchasing the bulbs, they must be "dried" for 3-4 days. at room temperature. Then put to cool in a dark dry place with a positive temperature from 4 to 9 degrees (without planting yet). The optimal time to start cooling crocus bulbs for early forcing is from the third decade of August to the first decade of September. The period of cooling and rooting should be at least three months. If you decide to buy crocuses in the fall, many of them may already have sprouts. But this does not mean that the bulbs are ready for flowering. For guaranteed flowering, they must go through a cooling period and take root well. The best place for cooling is a refrigerator. It can also be a cold pantry, attic or barn. Owners of a glazed loggia can place crocuses here in a dark place. Although it should be taken into account that depending on weather conditions, the temperature on the loggia can change. If you still decide to stop at the refrigerator, do not rush to plant the bulbs in the ground right away. They can easily last for a month at the right cooling temperature, simply wrapped in paper or newspaper. This way you can save some space in the refrigerator for a while, not filling it with pots and bowls.
