Water-grown tulips and hyacinths at Wegmans stores

Tulip bulbs growing in water were being sold at a Wegmans store.Water-grown tulips at Wegmans: Bulbs growing in water seems to be the trend these days.

I was in a Wegmans store last week and saw tulips growing in water in large glass vases. There were also a few hyacinths, already in flower, growing in smaller vases of water.

(How to grow indoor tulips in a plain vase.)

On their website, the people behind the brand  Bloomaker proclaim themselves "the inventors of a new floral category."

In addition to the water-grown tulips, they also offer retailers similarly grown holiday amaryllis, hyacinth and daffodill bulbs. You can watch time-lapse clips of various arrangements as they grow through bloom. 

According to the site: "Long Life Flowers is a new home decor vase collection of flower bulbs grown only in water." The company promises that  the water-grown bulbs can produce  fresh flowers indoors for up to four weeks.

Part of the secret is a patented pin-tray system that keeps the bulbs above the water in their vases -- much like my marbles, stones or plastic "rocks" method.

Intriguing, but I resisted the urge to spend $20 on a vase of the tulips knowing that I had some tulip bulbs in my basement as part of my own indoor hydroponic bulb-growing experiments.     

I learned earlier this month that most bulbs need the long cooling period before they can be forced to bloom indoors. So, I put some tulip bulbs in the cold, dark  basement with the plan to leave them there at least 12 weeks to give them a "winter."

I hope to grow those bulbs in water, and even if am just starting them around the time they would be coming up outdoors, at least I might be able to enjoy them when and if they open. They'll be safer inside than my outdoor tulips where the usual scenario involves me finding only stems after their heads have been chomped off by area deer before they've had a chance to open.

Forcing amaryllis and muscari bulbs: An At Home Journal (Week 7)

Muscari (grape hyacinth) bulbs continue to grow stems. A thickening stem cracks the neck on one of the amaryllis bulbs.Jan. 20:

Amaryllis bulb #1: This week's exciting event is the sight of a thick, stiff stalk bursting through the neck of the amaryllis bulb in the tallest vase.  The bulb is also showing the tips of three more stems. 

Amaryllis bulb #2: The bulb in the shorter vase has a thickening shorter stem with three more layered stems emerging on the opposite side. 

Muscari bulbs: The grape hyacinth bulbs have an abundance of lush, thick green stems. I resisted the urge to pluck off a wayward stalk just to make a better photograph. The purplish bump at the end of one stem is still there, making me hold hope for at least one flower.

I confess that I have little hope that these bulbs will bloom. I figure that like larger hyacinths, they needed a cooling period that would replicate winter. Since they were sprouting, I decided to just put them on top of marbles in water to see what would happen. That was before I read up on forcing bulbs in water and learned that they might grow, but are unlikely to flower without the requisite chilling period of about three months.

Either way, I am appreciating the thick growth of stems as an unusual houseplant. It's pretty amazing that they are growing vigorously in the wide vase with only water and marbles.

Forcing amaryllis and muscari bulbs: An At Home Journal (Weeks 5-6)

Muscari bulbs, left, grow in a novelty cocktail glass beside a large amaryllis bulb whose roots are being watered in a vase.Jan. 4:

Notice a white, fuzzy growth around some of the older roots on the water-only (no marbles or pebbles) amaryllis bulb while changing the water. Note that there seems to be a good growth of thick, greenish-white new roots (shown in detail below). Take the risk of plucking off the old roots that seem to be rotting, moldy or otherwise compromised.

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Forcing amaryllis and muscari bulbs: An At Home journal (Week 4)

An impressive show of greenery from Muscari bulbs. Still no sight of flower buds.Stems poking up from one of the bulbs. Dec. 30 (PM):

Notice the tip of a new stem beginning to emerge from the cut top of one of the amaryllis bulbs. Now, realizing how to look for obvious growth, check the top of the other bulb and discover two stem tips tucked just inside the layers of the bulb's cut top.

Dec. 31 (AM):

The muscari bulbs are now about three times as tall. Check in vain for signs of bud formation. Realize that the blue glass looks pretty, but probably wasn't the best choice for assessing water condition. Decide to pour off a little water to check it and realize it is impossible to do so without the marbles -- and roots -- moving. Opt not to use the turkey baster to suction out the water. Take a sniff and note that the scent seems wholesome and vegetal. Use a pitcher to carefully add a little more water without wetting the bulbs. Note that they look happy and that even the tiny bulb divisions at the base of some bulbs have sprouted a single long stem.

Feel pleased with my efforts. Hope for the best.

Forcing amaryllis and muscari bulbs: An At Home journal (Week 3)

Stems grow vigorously from grape hyacinth bulbs on marbles in water. Will they bloom after growing more than two weeks? Dec. 24 (AM):

Growth on the muscari bulbs has nearly doubled. Check in vain for signs of buds forming, remembering  that indoor plants will sometimes grow tall when they don't have enough light. Note that the stems look very green and robust. Hope for the best.

Change water on amaryllis bulbs, which seem to have movement in the cut area at each bulb's top.

Dec. 27 (PM):

Visit my plant-sitting friend and discover that muscari bulbs (set in front of a sunny sliding glass door on Dec. 5) have finally grown stems with about a week's worth of height (compared to my much taller bulbs started at home earlier that same day). Add a little water.

Pour out water on the water-only amaryllis bulb, which is showing signs of growth on its cut end, but not much root development. The water smells a little strange, the roots look a bit slimy. Rinse off roots, carefully add water so it doesn't wet or touch the bulb. Hope for the best.