Move over Amaryllis! 5 Unique Bulbs to Force Indoors for January Color

I remember my confusion as a child when I first heard that you plant spring bulbs in fall and fall bulbs in spring. As it turns out, that’s not a hard and fast rule. You can get bulbs to bloom in winter too, using a process called forcing.

Forcing bulbs simply means getting a bulb to bloom at a time other than its normal schedule. Not every bulb can be forced, but those that can provide a lovely burst of spring beauty right when we need it most… in January! Amaryllis is the classic bulb to force, but it’s hardly the only one. Here are five more to try:

1. Daffodils

Daffodils are generally spring bulbs. In fact they're considered a classic harbinger of spring. They're admired for their charming yellow flowers – with outer petals around a cup of inner petals – and a sweet, citrusy fragrance. Their botanical name is Narcissus pseudonarcissus.

Although traditionally daffodils are trumpet-shaped canary-yellow blossoms, that’s not your only choice for forcing. There are many varieties of daffodils you can force, including some with ivory blossoms (‘Mt. Hood’), golden blossoms (‘Bridal Crown’), and white blossoms with salmon cups (‘Accent’).

Daffodils are among the easiest bulbs to force and their cheery charm is much appreciated in January. They do need a chill period of 3 to 4 months however, where they are placed in a cold, dark environment with a temperature below 45 degrees.

Daffodils are said to symbolize fresh starts, hope, and joy. If you are forcing them indoors, keep them out of reach of pets and kids. They are toxic if ingested.

Snag your own daffodil bulbs from Home Depot and get planting today!

2. Paperwhite Narcissus

Paperwhites (with the botanical name of Narcissus papyraceus) are as starry as a flower can be. They produce clusters of pure small, white, star-shaped blossoms with an intense, sweet fragrance and are another good choice for forcing indoors in winter.

Paperwhites are also part of the Narcissus genus, like daffodils, and are similarly easy to force. With very little effort, you can have their sweet fragrance and cheerful beauty in winter.

And, like daffodils, these delicate blooms are toxic to both humans and pets if eaten, so position them accordingly.

While some bulbs need to be forced in soil, paperwhite forcing is even easier. A paperwhite bulb will bloom in a month in pebbles and water. Like amaryllis, they don’t need a long cold period either – just a couple weeks in a cool location suffices.

You can get paperwhite bulbs delivered straight to you from Amazon.

3. Hyacinths

Hyacinths (Hyacinthus orientalis) are right up there with daffodils and paperwhite when it comes to easy forcing. They are stunning flowers in a wide range of colors - from bright purple to pink, blue, white and yellow - and the icing on the cake is their sweet fragrance.

Hyacinth forcing is flexible – they can be planted in soil or in water. In either case, they will need around 12-14 weeks of chill time before being set out to bloom. Don’t try to cheat on this; if you don’t chill long enough, they simply will not bloom. If you let them chill appropriately, at the end of the period, you’ll see little shoots grow. When those shoots are a few inches tall, bring them out of the cold area and into the sun. Expect flowers in a matter of weeks.

You can plant your hyacinth bulbs straightaway from Lowe's.

4. Tulips

Who doesn’t love tulips? They manage to look both elegant and sexy at the same time, in bold colors that are just plain exciting, anything from scarlet to gold to lavender to black. Tulips – in the Tulipa genus – force nicely, but you’ll have to get started early.

No forcing tulips in water. These bulbs must be forced in soil, well-draining soil. And they’ll need a chill time of some 10-16 weeks. Curiously, the later you start the chilling, the less time the bulbs require. If you start chilling in September, count on four months; if you start in December, only two and a half months.

After the chill period is over, move the pots to a spot with bright, indirect light. Once they develop shoots of a couple of inches, move to a site with direct sun. When those buds appear and open, you can place the pot where it will get the most admiring glances. What a treat it is to have pots of tulips blooming in winter.

Tulip bulbs are out of stock in a lot of stores, but can get your own today at Home Depot.

5. Crocuses

So much beauty in a tiny package! The tiny crocus bulbs (Crocus spp.) can deliver such joy in the middle of winter with so little effort from you. Their tiny, perfect flowers create a plant that is pure magic.

Crocuses force easily in soil, but require that pesky chilling period. For these charming flowers, it’s 12-15 weeks. If you’re impatient, just remember that the chilling period represents winter, and when you bring them out of the cold, they think it’s spring... even if it is really the middle of January. Just set them in a bright window and watch the white shoots that grew during cold storage turn green. Expect those blooms anywhere from two weeks to a month after the chill period is over.

These crocus bulbs from Lowe's are a beautiful mix of colors at a price that can't be beat.

Take Out the Guesswork!