|
Forcing Bulbs Indoors
Forcing Blooms
Inspiration
Houseplant Helper
Holiday Houseplant Care |
|
Forced
forsythia blossoms |
You can get an early breath
of spring by forcing blooms indoors!
Forsythia is a flowering shrub
that is famous for being so easily forced into bloom
indoors. In the page background here, is forced
flowering cherry.
If you don't have flowering
trees or shrubs in your garden to cut boughs for forcing,
don't despair! Along roadside ditches or along stream banks
in areas near you that have "naturalized", you can usually
find Pussy Willow or Witch Hazel for cutting.
Most
of the force-able bulbs take advance preparation, but January or
February are not too late for paper whites, amaryllis and
Iris reticulata.
Depending
on your zone, you can force shrub cuttings as early as
January or as late as March. Click the links below to
go to the instructions. |
|
|
How
to Force Branches from Shrubs for Indoor Bloom
|
Forced quince
blossoms |
You
can cut boughs from your spring-blooming shrubs and trees to bring them
inside, and “force” them to open. The best time to do this is
between February and April, depending on your zone, when the temperature
begins to climb above freezing for a day or two.
Procedure:
Select
branches that have the most buds and make a clean cut flush against the
trunk of the tree so that no stub is left. This procedure ensures quick
healing. Then seal all the cuts on the shrub with a mixture of
antiseptic mouthwash and latex paint.
After gathering the branches, crush or split the lower stems a few
inches from the bottom to increase the area exposed to water for better
absorption. Then place the branches in a bucket or large vase of room
temperature water. Beautiful blooms will begin to appear within a few
weeks. And, what a sight for sore, winter weary eyes!
Here
are the best shrubs and trees for forcing indoors for early spring
bloom. Cutting times are based on zone 6, and will vary - earlier
for zone 7 and up, and later for zone 4-5.
| Name |
Zone |
Size |
Exposure |
Bloom
Season |
Time
to Cut |
Time
to Bloom |
Serviceberry
Amelanchier |
4-8 |
20-30'H
x 15'W |
Full sun |
White, early to midspring |
Feb-Mar |
1-4 wks |
Eastern
redbud
Cercis canadensis |
4-9 |
30'H x
20'W |
Full
sun to light shade |
Pink,
mid to late spring |
Mar |
2-3 wks |
Flowering quince
Chaenomeles |
4-10 |
6-12'H x 6-12'W |
Full sun |
Pink, red, white, mid
spring |
Feb-Mar |
4 wks |
Flowering
Dogwood
Cornus florida |
4-9 |
40'H x
40'W |
Full
sun to part shade |
Yellow,
mid to late spring |
Mid-Mar |
2 wks |
Cornelian cherry
Cornus mas |
4-8 |
25'H x 25'W |
Full sun to part shade |
Yellow, early spring |
Jan-Mar |
2 wks |
Forsythia
Forsythia |
5-9 |
8'H x
8'W |
Full
sun to light shade |
Yellow,
early to mid spring |
Jan
-Mar |
1-3 wks |
Fothergilla
Fothergilla |
5-8 |
4'H x 4'W |
Full sun to part shade |
White, mid to late
spring |
Mar |
2-3 wks |
Vernal
witch hazel
Hamamelis vernalis |
4-8 |
10'H x
10'W |
Full
sun to part shade |
Red or
yellow, late Jan to Mar |
Jan-Feb |
1 wks |
Mountain laurel
Kalmia latifolia |
4-7 |
6'H x 6'W |
Full sun to part shade |
White/pink/rose, late
spring-early summer |
Mar |
5 wks |
Beautybush
Kolkwitzia amabilis |
4-9 |
6'H x
8'W |
Full
sun to light shade |
Yellow
throated pink, early spring |
Mar |
6 wks |
Honeysuckle
Lonerica |
4-8 |
6'H x 8'W |
Sun or shade |
White or pink, early
spring |
Mar |
1-3 wks |
Saucer
magnolia
Magnolia/soulangeana |
5-9 |
20'H x
20'W |
Part
shade |
White to rose
blossoms, early spring |
Mar |
3-5 wks |
Star magnolia
Magnolia stellata |
5-9 |
15'H x 15'W |
Part shade |
White, early spring |
Mar |
3-5 wks |
Apple,
crab apple
Malus |
4-8 |
20'h X
20'w |
Full
sun |
White
to pink, spring |
Feb-Mar |
2-5 wks |
Mock orange
Philadelphus |
4-8 |
8'H x8'W |
Full sun to part shade |
White, late spring |
Mar |
4-6 wks |
Flowering almond, plum, cherry
Prunus |
5-8 |
25'H x
25'W |
Full
sun |
White or pink, mid
spring |
Feb |
2-5 wks |
Pear
Pyrus |
5-9 |
30'H x 18'W |
Full sun |
White, early to mid spring |
Jan-Feb |
4-5 wks |
Rhododendron,
azalea
Rhododendron |
4-9 |
3-12'H
x 3-12'W |
Full
sun to part shade |
All
colors, early to mid spring |
Jan-Feb |
4-5 wks |
Pussy willow
Salix discolor |
3-10 |
20'H x 10-20'W |
Full sun |
silvery catkins, early
spring |
Feb-Mar |
1-3 wks |
Bridalwreath
Spiraea prunifolia |
4-8 |
5'H x
4'W |
Full
sun to part shade |
White,
mid-Apr |
Mar |
4 wks |
[ Home ] [ Forcing Blooms ] [ Inspiration ] [ Houseplant Helper ] [ Holiday Houseplant Care ]
|
