What to do about bulbs that never sprouted

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Just when I thought that I'd seen everything, this year I saw hyacinth bulbs that never sprouted. I checked the internet and could find nothing on it. Apparently it never happens, but it did.

I've planted bulbs before, and I know that I did everything right. Besides, it's not that difficult - dig a hole, plant them the correct depth, water a bit and in a couple of weeks you'll see them sprout. Except that I planted them on September 27th, and by mid November I still hadn't seen the tiniest sprout. Strange!

Yesterday (November 20th) I decided to dig them up to see what had gone wrong. I assumed that they hadn't rooted, or maybe had mysteriously disappeared, I really didn't know what to think. I had long since given up on them, and I was just curious. So I dug.

When I got to the first one I was surprised to see a little teeny-weenie green sprout, no more than an eight of an inch long. And the bulb was definitely rooted. In fact, for some of them I pulled them out and sure enough they'd grown roots. Not a lot, but definitely roots. The plants are alive.

The photo up there doesn't show it very well, but there's a hole dug there about three inches below the level of the garden. And I'm leaving the plant there. I filled it up with water several times yesterday and am assuming that when it sees the sunlight, and feels the warmth, it will "force". Right now it's just kinda like a bulb in a glass forcing container - you can actually see the top of the bulb. Hopefully it will start to grow now, and as it grows I'll add more potting soil into the hole so that the area looks better, and will provide more stability for the plant.

I've never seen this before, and going by the fact that I couldn't find any information on it when I searched, I'm guessing it doesn't happen very often. And maybe when it does, people give up and forget about it. But I couldn't forget, and I'm going to see this through.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Update December 11th


They're still alive, and I can see a tiny bit of growth, but nothing like I'd expect after all of this time. As you can see, I dug down to expose the tip of the bulb, which can't be more than 1/8 inch, and I'm adding some coffee grounds around it, which as the bulb grows, will fill in the hole. I'm hand-watering very generously, even though it rained recently, and I refuse to give up.

Update December 16th


It's alive, but it's the slowest-growing hyacinth that I've ever seen. I've been hand-watering it every few days, and adding more coffee grounds around it. I make sure to keep it as exposed as possible to encourage the warmth of the sunlight to help it along. It's tiny, but it's alive. And as long as it's here, I won't let it die. Not on my watch!

Update January 9th

OK, it's still alive, but dang it's growing slowly! The bulb is just barely below the soil and the sprout is barely a half-inch tall - after over two months. Usually they spring up and grow like wildfire, but not this time, I guess. I'm adding more coffee grounds every once in a while, and am making sure that it's not covered by leaves so that it can get as much sun as it can. We got a nice rain two days ago, and the temperatures now will be highs in the 60s, maybe even low 70s, so it should get everything it needs. Yes, I talk to it! I don't give up easily!

Update January 17


I think there's a flower forming in there, what do you think? The plant is still barely a half-inch high, but it's definitely alive. I may have an amazing miniature hyacinth here! I'll keep an eye on it.

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