November: Waiting for brighter days

The fall temperatures have turned cold and the skies are often gray as I look out my kitchen window. Bright bluejays and dark eyed juncos add activity to what is otherwise a dull landscape.

I hope, now that November is here, you have your gardens and house tucked in for colder temperatures. That is usually a fulfilling but labor-intensive job, at least it is at our house.

When the job is done, l realize that the emptiness of the flower garden is like cleaning a slate to redesign next year's palette of color.

Of course I enjoy the escape from watering and weeding, but look forward to what the next growing season will bring.

If the ground hasn't froze in your landscape, you can still plant some spring flowering bulbs. It is always fun to see how they pop through the soil and more exciting to see buds emerge before bloom.

Last spring, I had the joy of waiting for tulips to bloom, sent by a granddaughter who had lived in Washington state. I am hoping for a repeat show.

If you aren't planting bulbs in your garden, you can still enjoy the blooms by forcing bulbs in your house.

The bulbs need chill time. Some may already need to be in cooler temperatures. Bulbs fun to force include daffodils, hyacinth, tulips and paper whites.

The paper whites are the quickest to bloom but they also come with a strong fragrance that may force you to move them to the garage as their tiny white flowers appear.

My first glimpse of forcing bulbs was 30-some years ago when a friend invited me to her home for coffee, and there stood a beautiful blooming pot of tulips. She had forced the bulbs. I was instantly in love with the idea.

Forcing tulips has been a challenge for me as they need 14 to 16 weeks of chill before potting and then you still have to wait for the plants to emerge and bloom.

Daffodils take some time, too, but I have had more success with them.

Hyacinths can be ever so fun. You can force them by placing them in vases with bulbs nestled above water or planting them in soil. The bulbs should not touch the water beneath them and can rest on rocks. You may be lucky enough to find little vases made for holding the bulbs above the water.

I hope you give bulb forcing a try. There are exact directions on the Internet or in gardening books at your library.

If you aren't sure about forcing bulbs, growers have made it easy with gift boxes of amaryllis bulbs which now fill many store shelves. They too give a burst of color to our homes as we wait for spring.

Bulbs are fun whether you wait for them in your outdoor landscape, force them for gift giving or for your own home.

As winter gives you a gray or even white landscape out your kitchen window, you will be able to look around your home at the bright blooms you forced this fall.