Can’t wait for spring flowers? Me neither! The weather is still far from perfect for planting, but the conditions indoors are perfect for keeping your favourite spring bulbs in pots. (Perfect if you forgot to plant your spring flowers in the fall!) Most of these classic specimens won’t just keep your home colourful through Easter—they’re also great for transplanting outdoors for years of early-spring enjoyment. Here’s the lineup you’ll find in-store this spring at Royal City Nursery!
We simply don’t give ranunculus, also known as buttercup, enough credit. Their rose-like flowers, fabulous spring colours, and dramatic size deserve to be the stars of the spring garden. However, because they’re not especially hardy in our area, they’re a bit of an unsung gem. They’re popular as garden annuals and cut flowers, but you’ll get the best of both worlds with a potted ranunculus. Keep yours in the sunniest place you can find, and keep the soil moist (but not wet) for four to six weeks of jaw-dropping blooms.
If you love the look of crocuses peeking out from your lawn or garden beds, you’ll absolutely adore them as a potted plant. Crocuses are some of the earliest blooming spring flowers, and they make lovely, if somewhat understated, potted plants. Crocuses bloom best in full sun, and the flowers will last you up to three weeks. Enjoy them as part of your Easter decor, and then transplant them outdoors into the garden to enjoy more flowers year after year!
Daffodils are known to symbolize rebirth and new beginnings, hence their popularity around the Easter season. In the same spirit, potted daffodils make perfect centrepieces for your Easter table or just a gorgeous pop of colour to complement your spring decor. As it so happens, classic daffodils also match one of the 2021 Pantone Colours of the Year, a bright shade of yellow called Illuminating. Coincidence? Absolutely. However, if you’re already decorating your home with this trendy colour in mind, your daffodil will fit right in! Keep in full sun, and transplant into the garden after the last frost to enjoy outdoors next year.
The popularity of hyacinth has fluctuated over the years, but recently they’ve been enjoying a resurgence! These days, it seems like they’re some of the hottest spring flowers around, in part thanks to their unmistakable fragrance. Keeping a hyacinth as a potted flower is a perfect way to perfume your home with spring fragrance without having to babysit a scented candle! Hyacinth flowers are fleeting, lasting only about 2 weeks, but like crocuses and daffodils, these multi-flowered bulbs can be transplanted into the garden and kept as perennials. Hyacinths need full sun to look their best.
Muscari is also known as grape hyacinth, but they really have a charm of their own. If you haven’t had the pleasure of seeing these flowers in action, the first thing you’ll notice is how cute they are! Their miniature scale, plump grape-shaped flowers, and gorgeous scent make them some of the best spring flowers for keeping in pots. Muscari grows well in areas with full or indirect sunlight and will grace your home with up to three weeks of flowers. They can also be transplanted outdoors so you can enjoy their little blue blossoms over a few more spring seasons.
If there were a queen of the spring garden, it would probably be the tulip! You just can’t get much more timeless than this spring-blooming classic. If you can’t get enough of them in your garden, just think of their potential as potted beauties for your table, mantel, and any other sunny surface you can think of! If there’s one downside to tulips, it’s how quickly they fade, especially when cut. However, by keeping them in pots, you can usually squeeze a little more time out of the blooms before transplanting the bulbs into your garden. For the longest-lasting flowers, keep them in a cool-yet-sunny location, like your windowsill.
If these pretty pots are giving you spring fever, don’t wait until they’re gone! Visit our garden centre soon during our store hours (Tuesday-Friday from 9:30 am – 5:00 pm, or Saturday 10:00 am – 4:00 pm) to browse spring pots and more great ideas for stepping into the season.
