Photo Credit
Marcin Jucha/Shutterstock
Botanical Name
Hyacinthus (True Hyacinths); Muscari (Grape Hyacinths)
Plant Type
Bloom Time
No content available.
Subhead
Planting and Caring for Hyacinths and Grape Hyacinths
December 26, 2023
Sign up for daily gardening advice and tips
Ahhh! The scent of hyacinth is intoxicating in springtime! Plant these bulbs in the fall for pastel blooms year after year. Here’s aguide to planting, growing, and caring forhyacinths.
About Hyacinths and GrapeHyacinths
- Hyacinths (Hyacinthus):Originally a pale blue or violet flower, hyacinths now come in a rainbow of colors, includinglilacs, pinks, white, cobalt blue, cream, apricot, and even a blood-red hue. Each hyacinth bulb generally produces one flower stalk that stands 8 to 10 inches tall. The hyacinth’s loose-to-dense racemes (clusters) of strongly fragrant flowers may beclosely packedsingle or doubleflowers.
- Grape hyacinths (Muscari)are not directly related to true hyacinths, but also bloom in mid-spring and have the same care requirements. This tiny wonder has smallclusters of bell-shaped, cobalt-blueflowers.
Note: This page will refer to both Hyacinthus and Muscari plants as “hyacinths” for simplicity’ssake!
As hyacinths are one of the first blooms, they look best at the front of a perennial garden, near the front door, along a walkway,or in mixed borders. These beauties are also a great choice for pots and planters. Hyacinths make wonderful cutting flowers, too, and look stunning in bouquets. As the flowers are famousfor theirfragrance, you can bring the sweet scent of springinside!
The Victorians revered hyacinths for their sweet, lingering fragrance, and carefully massed them in low beds, planting them in rows of one color each. In general, hyacinths are said to symbolize playfulness, sport, and rashness, though their meanings are color-dependent. Learn more about the meanings of flowers.
Please note: Most hyacinths grow in zones 3to 9. They must have coldtemperatures of 40° to 45°F (4° to 7°C) for at least 12 to 14 weeks. If temperatures in your area do not get this cold, you’ll need to pre-chill the bulbs in a refrigerator before planting themoutdoors.
Warning: Hyacinth bulbs (and daffodilbulbs) contain a substance called oxalic acid, which can be irritating to bare skin. Use gloves when handling these bulbs for extendedperiods.
Read Next
Planting
Choose a planting site that gets full sun for the largest blooms and straightest stems.The bulbs are tolerant of partial shade aswell.
Grow in loosened, moderately fertile soil that drains well. Avoid planting low areas where water collects; hyacinths will rot in wet soil! Before planting, loosen the soil and work in 2 to 4 inches ofcompost or bonemeal forfertility.
When to PlantHyacinths
- Like other spring-blooming bulbs, plant hyacinth bulbs in mid-to-late autumn, any time after yourfirst fall frostand before the groundfreezes.
How to PlantHyacinths
- Plant hyacinth bulbs 4 to 5 inchesdeep. Space bulbs 5 to 6 inches apart (grape hyacinths can be 2 inches apart). At the northern limits of their hardiness (USDA Zone 3), plant 1 to 2 inches deeper to ensure winterhardiness.
- Dig out a larger area if you wish to plant five or more bulbs simultaneously. Hyacinths look beautiful ingroupings of five to nine bulbs. Grape hyacinths also lookbest in masses and loosedrifts.
- Set the bulb in the hole with the pointy endup.
- After planting and covering with soil, waterthoroughly.
- Apply a 1-to-2-inch layer of mulch around the plants to discourage weeds anddisease.
- If you are transplanting, water sparingly and then do not water again until flower buds appear the followingyear.
Forcing Hyacinth BulbsIndoors
- Hyacinth bulbs may be forced into early growth for indoor display in the winter. Plant them with the tips just showing, in soil-based potting mix in containers with drainageholes.
- Keep in a dark place at temperatures above freezing but no higher than 45°F (7°C), for at least ten weeks to allow roots todevelop.
- When shoots are about 1 inch long, increase light and temperaturegradually.
- Water carefully, avoiding wetting the shoots or waterlogging the soil. Soil should be moist,notwet.
- After flowering, forced hyacinths may be transplanted intothe garden, and they will flower again in subsequentyears.
Growing
Caring forHyacinths
- Do NOT overwater hyacinth. They do not like standing water or having “wet feet.”Water ONLY if thesoil is dry at a depth of 3 inches.If it is dry at that depth, it is time to water.
- Water deeply at the soil level, not from overhead or with a sprinkler which encourages disease. Lay the hose end next to the plant, turn the hose on low, and water for about 30 minutes or until the soil is moist. A soaker hose turned on low for a few hours will cover a larger areaeffectively.
- With the organic matter and mulch, you do not need to fertilize.However, it’s OK to sprinkle a commercial organic fertilizer over thesoil.
- Protect container-grown plants from excessive winter moisture by covering them or moving them to a shelteredarea.
Recommended Varieties
- Hyacinth orientalis ‘Blue Jacket’:One of the great blues of the flower world. These award-winning hyacinths display big columns of royal blue florets with crisp whiteedges.
- H. orientalis‘City of Haarlem’: A wonderful heirloom variety that’s been popular since the late 1800s. The flowers are soft, primrose yellow, maturing to creamywhite.
- H. orientalis‘Gypsy Queen’:‘Gypsy Queen’ is an heirloom hyacinth with salmon pink petals with peach and buttery-yellowhighlights.
- H. orientalis ‘Jan Bos’: Intensely fragrant, this award-winning hyacinth has fuschia-pink florets that are tightly packed into largeflowerheads.
- H. orientalis ‘Miss Saigon’: With a deep, rich purple color, this fragrant hyacinth is covered with starry, violet florets.Gorgeous!
- H. orientalis‘Pink Pearl’: Rose-pink flower heads turn heads with their cotton-candy sweetness; ‘Pink Pearl’ isa favorite for spring containers to add a pop ofcolor.
- Muscari armeniacum:This grape hyacinthhassmall and delicate cobalt-blue flowers that look gorgeous when planted en masse.
Harvesting
What to Do With Hyacinths AfterFlowering
Outdoors
- After your hyacinthshave finished flowering, remove the blooms, but don’t remove thefoliage. The bulbs needtheirleaves to gather energy for next year’s blooms. The foliage will die back naturally at the end of the spring season.Remove when the leaves have turned brown to help prevent fungaldiseases.
- Hyacinth bulbs canremain in the ground throughout the year in most planting zones. If you live a warm climate wheretemperaturesdo not get below 60°F, bulbs should be dug up in the fall and refrigerated in a cool, dry area for 6 to 8 weeks.Hyacinthsrequire a period of colder weather tobloom.
Indoors
- Hyacinth bulbs that have finished flowering indoors can be transplanted into the garden. After flowering, they need time to gather energy for next year’s blooms, so they should not be placed directly intostorage.
- After their foliage dies back outdoors, hyacinth bulbscan be brought indoors and stored in a cool, dark, dry place until the fall orwinter.
Gardening Products
@Recommendation.Title
$@Recommendation.Price
BUY NOW
Wit and Wisdom
Are Hyacinth Bulbs Poisonous to Cats andDogs?
Yes, hyacinth bulbs are poisonous to pets. Many springflowers, such as hyacinths and daffodils,containa compound that may causestomach and respiratory issues and skin irritation. Thissubstance—calcium oxalate—is most concentrated in the bulbs, but is also found in the foliage and flowers of the hyacinth plant. Keep hyacinths out of reach of curious pets and children, and wear gloves when handlinghyacinth bulbs for long periods oftime.
Theone upside tothe hyacinth’s toxicityis that common garden pests, such as squirrels and groundhogs, often aren’t as tempted to eat your hyacinthbulbs!
Will Hyacinths BloomAgain?
Yes and no. Hyacinths bloom just once yearly(in the spring), but they will happily bloom again in subsequent years if provided with the proper care. They are a perennialplant.
Pests/Diseases
- Bulbs are prone to gray mold and bulb rot when kept toowet.
Sign up for daily gardening advice and tips
ADVERTIsem*nT
Advertisem*nt
No content available.
ADVERTIsem*nT
Comments
I gave a beautiful Hyacinth to my daughter in law for Easter. It is dying. The flowers are mostly gone and the leaves look good, other than the tips being brown. How do I bring it back to life?
Hi, Cheryl, Hyacinths are bulbs; they flower and fade. You might bring it back if you left it dry out, and when the foliage (the green bands of leaf) dies back (dries out), cut it off and, in the fall, plant the bulb. It will need a few weeks or so of cold weather. It might bloom again next spring. (I say “might” because it was probably forced to be in bloom for Easter; you can not always be certain that it will come back … but itmight.)
If you are not in an area that has a cold winter, you could try forcing it. Here is some advice on doing that https://www.almanac.com/fooling-mother-nature-forcing-bulbs
We hope thishelps!
I live just north of San Francisco. I plant hyacinths in pots on my patio every year, but the flower stems never grow more than two or three inches tall and flowers are popping open at dirt level. I keep trying with no reward. I have no problem with daffodils and tulips. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
This commonly happens with bulbs that haven’t been chilled long enough. They require about 12 weeks of cold temps to get them “in the mood” for blooming properly. If you buy them from a supplier, they should already be chilled, but you could try chilling them for a few more weeks before planting them. Also make sure that you’re planting at the right depth—they should sit about 4 inchesdeep.
I have hyacinths in the ground in NJ, they were supposed to be a giant variety but they were always were short too, until this year. They were the tallest they’ve ever been and I wonder why this year they got so tall so I can continue it. 😀
I live in heber springs Arkansas , and I was given 2 hyacinth bulbs. For some reason I'm struggling inthis odd environment. You can get all seasons in a day here n I'm wondering if there is anything specific I can do?
Chill the bulbs in the 1st of August in a paper bag. Plant them in Thanksgiving.
After the blooms are finished, cut off the spent flowers, fertilizer it once and let it dry out completely then store the bulbs in a paper bag.
Chill them on August 1st start the whole cycle over again.
I lived in Houston TX and I have successfully grown spring bulbs for years except tulips.
What are the many round balls on some of the extensions of the hyacins after it has bloomed? What do I do with them?
Hi Mary Ann, The balls on spent hyacinth stems are seed pods. Most people prune the stems when the bloom fails, before the pods form; you can certainly prune them out when you see them. If you leave them on, they draw energy from the bulb, which may diminish the plant’s performance in the longrun.
Those are the seed pods! They’ll mature and fall off on theirown.
ADVERTIsem*nT
@Recommendation.Title
$@Recommendation.Price
BUY NOW
