Fooling Mother Nature

One of the ways that I satisfy my craving for spring, is by forcing arching branches of forsythia to bloom indoors. At Connecticut Country House, towards the end of February, is when I venture outside armed with a pair of sharp Fiskars hand pruners, clip a bunch of branches laden with buds, plunk them into a bucket of water and bring them inside.

Simple steps to get them to bloom:

1. Re-cut the stems on the diagonal, to desired length.
2. Remove any buds or twigs that would fall under the water line.
3. Slightly crush about an inch or so of the ends with a hammer. (This increases the surface area and enables the hollow stems to absorb more water.)
4. Arrange freshly crushed stems in a tall vase or bucket of warm water.
5. Place in a warm, light-filled spot.
6. Be patient. Depending upon how far along the buds were at the time of the clipping will determine how quickly they’ll bloom.

Before you know it, you’ll be rewarded with a beautiful display of golden yellow blossoms that’ll help chase away winter blahs, and say an early hello to spring!

I hope you give it a try!

Love, Nora