How to grow a hyacinth

A friend gave me a lovely gift for my birthday – an Aqua Culture Vase. The vase consists of two parts: the actual vase and a saucer which sits on top of the vase. 

I bought a pack of hyacinth bulbs from the garden centre. If you are not familiar with hyacinth but love scented flowers, hyacinths will blow your mind! They are more commonly mauve, but you can also find white and pink hyacinths.

All you do is fill the vase with water, put the saucer in place and sit a bulb in the saucer. And wait. Within a few days white roots start appearing. Within about three weeks the bulb will start to open up and the flower will start appearing. I’m keeping mine in the laundry where it has light but not direct sunlight, and will eventually fill the room with its fragrance.

It’s a great thing for children to observe as it takes about three months for the full cycle to complete.

You can grow other bulbs in the vase, and herbs like mint, succulents, and seeds such as avocado.

And having just re-read the instructions, I see that once the roots are growing, the water level enough should be dropped so that only one-third of the roots are immersed in water.

It’s a great ‘living’ gift! I note that small flowering hyacinths sell for about $25.00 each. A packet of bulbs is around $12.00.