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“Forcing bulbs help me get through the winter,” says Sean A Pritchard. The gardener and landscaper is passionate about growing flowers intended to be displayed indoors, as expressed in his book outside inside. Come winter, Pritchard’s 17th-century cottage in the Mendip Hills is filled with a fragrant array of potted hyacinths, daffodils and amaryllis, cheerfully adorning the tables and brightening the stacks of books.
For Pritchard, the idea of going an entire season without flower arrangements is incomprehensible: “Having these bulbs forced to bloom during the darkest months of the year is very uplifting and joyful.” Start planting them in late September and October, planning smartly ahead throughout the winter. to create a staggered succession of flowering. (Note for the time-poor: you can always catch up with pre-treated bulbs.)
Anna Pavord, author of the seminal book Bulbsuggests that the practice of lightbulb forcing began in Europe in the 17th century. It was the appropriately named English botanist Nehemiah Grew who discovered in 1682 that “by keeping plants warm” “the lurking young flowers can be encouraged to come abroad.” The bulbs in question were hyacinths, and their sighting sparked an obsession that peaked in the 18th century thanks in large part to Madame de Pompadour, who filled the interior of the Palace of Versailles with glass vases containing hundreds of their intoxicating flowers. aromatic.
“You’re basically tricking these bulbs into flowering,” Pritchard says. “So the key is knowing what exactly each one needs.” Hyacinths, for example, should be cooled (7-9°C) in a dark corner before being moved into a warm room (not too close to a direct heat source), while the more forgiving papery white daffodils and perennially popular, they don’t. t. “Once the daffodils feel like they’re being watered and it’s warm enough, they leave,” he says.
One of Pritchard’s favorites is the reticulated iris. “To me, it’s the most elegant light bulb you can force,” he says. “When they are blooming, it looks like they are pirouetting out of their pots.” Luckily, they’re also super easy – just pop them on and go. Pritchard tends to shop at Bloms Bulbs, Sarah Raven and Peter Nyssen (from £6 for 25), and likes worn antique terracotta containers with a bit of patina or Rowen & Wren’s Eden scalloped version (from £24).
Pritchard’s main objective is grow everything shown at homeinstead of depending on the immediacy of cut flowers that fly to the other side of the world. Forced bulbs have a long lifespan that can be extended further by moving them to cooler locations, such as a windowsill, once they are flowering. “Once they bloom, don’t be afraid to cut the stems and use them in a vase, too,” says Pritchard.
Rowen and wren Terracotta Eden Planter, from £24
Melon Mary Freya Bramble Carter x Studio Krokalia ceramic urn, £950, 8hollandstreet.com
When it comes to planting, which for most bulbs tends to occur between five and 12 weeks before they flower, garden designer Butter Wakefield opts for a maximalist, more-is-more mentality. “The bulbs should be nested but not touching each other. Just two or three in a pot can seem a bit depressing – the more you plant, the better the display will be,” he says. Wakefield, which usually sticks to single varieties, plants large numbers of paper-white daffodils and tulips throughout the season. When he’s short on time, he heads to New Covent Garden Market for ready-made hyacinths and white paper.
“The first thing is to find a nice container and then determine what type of bulb it’s best suited for,” says Wakefield, who uses everything from galvanized colanders (lined with plastic) to French jam containers and glazed or terracotta pots.
Wakefield layers moss on all-purpose compost (or bulb fiber) and often also dresses her displays with a wreath of woven birch twigs or larch branches to support the stems, and even adds fairy lights to brighten the gloomiest of days. of January.
Forced bulbs are also an opportunity to support British flower growers, from Raven to bulb specialists J Parker’s. Producer Charlie McCormick He often simply dips his beloved hyacinth bulbs into containers of water. “They are very easy to grow inside. Just keep them full so three-quarters of the bulb is submerged and they’re happy,” says McCormick, who ties the stems with raffia to support her favorite cheerful yellow and “Delft blue” flowers. (McCormick, who also loves white paper, suggests searching the Instagram account for The gardeners of the earth looking for inspiration.)
“There is something life-affirming about the simplicity and inevitability of daffodils,” agrees garden writer Lucy Bellamy, author of A year in bloom: flowering bulbs for every season (Faidon). “But technically you can force any true bulb, because by the time it’s dormant it already has a little shoot and leaves, waiting for the right conditions to sprout.” Bellamy highlights the optimism and high drama of amaryllis – in particular, the Hippeastrum papilioa scarlet-striped variety with a petal formation reminiscent of an orchid.
“The appeal of all these spring bulbs is that they provide a chance to get through the winter,” Bellamy says. What could be brighter and more beautiful than that?