How to grow tulips in a pot at home in winter?

Many people want to please their loved ones with spring flowers, not only during their natural flowering, but also in winter. This can be done using artificial forcing. Flowers grown at home are just as beautiful.

In order to grow tulips at home in a pot in winter, you need to familiarize yourself with some of their features. First of all, this is the planting time, which largely depends on the variety of the given plant and indicates whether it is early or later. In addition, it is very important to know which planting material is used: germinated or not. For planting in a pot, a bulb with a weight of at least 25 grams should be used so that it has enough nutrients.

There are several forcing options.

• Early. Tulips bloom during the New Year holidays, respectively, the end of December and the beginning of January. At this time, tulips will become a truly fabulous gift.
• Medium early. Plants bloom in January just in time for Christmas.
• Average. The blooming of tulips begins in February and pleases all lovers with the beauty.
• Late. The very last of the options, which is great as a gift for March 8th. Probably, there is no such person on earth who would not want to please his loved ones or mothers with such beauty, and even grown by his own hands.

Today, there are a large number of tulip bulbs on the markets, which have different forcing dates. Among them, the following varieties are worth noting.

• Plants with early forcing. This is, first of all, "Diamond Star" or "Miz Bridge". The buds appear in 2.5 - 3.5 months. The height of such tulips is small, up to 35 centimeters, and the buds in a circle do not exceed 7 centimeters. Most often, in their shape, they resemble a glass. Great for beginner gardeners.

• Medium distillation tulips. Most often these are "Darwin's hybrids", which attract many with a high bud reaching 11 centimeters. In addition, the plant itself grows up to 75 centimeters. However, for novice gardeners, growing them is not an easy task. It will be difficult to cope with their forcing without the tips of more experienced comrades, since the bud is too heavy and it will be very difficult to keep it for a long time.

• Late varieties. For example, "Aristocrat" or "Triumph". Their height is also no less than 75 centimeters, but the height of the flower is slightly lower, up to 9 centimeters. The shape of the bud is more like an open bowl.

You need to do the preparatory process in the summer, when the tulips will bloom and the bulb will get a little stronger. The plant must be dug up, and then healthy and stronger bulbs must be picked up for distillation. Then very carefully peel off the ground and place in a dry place. Store at temperatures between 23 and 25 degrees. After a month, the temperature must be reduced by 4 degrees and maintained until planting time.

Depending on what time you need to get blooming tulips, they are planted from early September to early November... The flower pot should be selected so that the bulb is at least 2 centimeters from the wall. If the pot contains not one, but two or three bulbs, then the distance between them should also be at least one and a half centimeters.

Landing technology.

• A drainage layer is laid at the very bottom of the container, which will prevent stagnation of water. It can be fine gravel or expanded clay.
• Next, the soil is laid in which the prepared bulbs can be planted. It must include deciduous humus, peat and sand. You can buy such a substrate either in a flower shop, or prepare it yourself. However, doing it yourself, you need to make sure that the acidity of the soil is neutral. The soil level in the pot should be just below the top edge. This is done so that in the future you can add earth when the plant grows up.
• After that, the soil must be shed with plain water or a weak manganese solution.
• Next, peel the onion and soak it in a potassium solution for half an hour. This is necessary so that the plant does not hurt in the future.
• It is imperative to plant the bulb with the root down, press it one centimeter into the ground, and then sprinkle it so that it is completely covered. Only its top can be on top.

After planting, the pots with future tulips should be placed in a cooler place. The temperature in it should be within 5 degrees above zero, and the humidity should be at least 70 percent. If there is a basement or cellar, then they are the best fit. However, if there are no such premises and the person lives in an apartment, then disembarkation on the balcony will do. You can also put the pot in the refrigerator, using the bottom shelf where the temperature is most suitable. In addition, the pot must be covered with either thick cardboard or, in extreme cases, with an ordinary newspaper, but leave a small hole so that the bulbs can breathe.

After a month and a half, a flowerpot with bulbs can be taken out and transferred to a warmer and darker place, where the temperature should be within 13 degrees. If this is an apartment, then you can put it on the windowsill, where there is no battery, or near the balcony, at the very bottom, near the door. In the event that this is not possible, you can put the pot near the window, but at the same time covering it. From time to time, the bulbs need to be watered so that they do not dry out.

After one week, you can see that the bulbs have sprouted up to 6-8 centimeters. Now you can remove the cardboard and continue growing in a warmer and lighter place, for example, on a window. However, the light should be diffused, and the sun's rays should not burn young shoots. Therefore, it is best to use windows that face west or east. The temperature must be maintained within 18-20 degrees.

After a certain time, the leaves of the tulips will acquire a natural green color. In addition, you will be able to see how the first buds are formed. This means that soon they will delight their owners with flowering. If the buds appear too early, then for a while they must be placed in a cool place. This will not only slow down the onset of flowering, but it will also extend it by a few days.

Do not forget that flowering plants also require some care. So, for example, they should be watered no more than twice a week. Top dressing with liquid fertilizers - once a month. It is also necessary to monitor the appearance of yellowed leaves, which should be removed - this is necessary so that they do not take away the strength from the flower.

The plant must be protected from possible drafts. Daylight hours for a blooming tulip should be at least 6 hours. In order to keep flowering longer, it is worth installing a pot of tulips in a place where there is no hot battery and heating devices. From time to time, be sure to ventilate the room.

Summing up, we can say that you should not be afraid to try something new and unusual.You just need to please your loved ones, and do everything possible and impossible for them. After all, a do-it-yourself tulip donated for a women's holiday or Valentine's Day will bring much more pleasure than one bought at the market or in a flower shop.

For forcing tulips at home, see the video below.