Taking Care of Easter Flowers

 Two of the best parts of Spring are celebrating Easter and flowers. So of course it's only natural that we should combine the two. When I was growing up, churches decked themselves out in Easter lilies and

everyone had daffodils and tulips in their gardens. To this day, grocery stores all carry various potted flowers for Easter so I know lots of you must be enjoying them. They also make a wonderful hostess gift. However, you may not know what to do with potted spring bulb flowers. Here is everything you need to know. 

When you bring them home, you can keep them inside or keep them on a protected porch. Don't try to repot them or plant them right away as it may shorten their bloom time. Check the soil frequently to be sure it's damp but not water logged (the plastic many plants come in will hold water so be sure the plants aren't sitting in a puddle!). The plants will also enjoy sunshine but too much heat can also speed up the bloom time. You want to keep those flowers looking good for as long as possible. 

When the plant is done flowering, you can then plant it outside. You can dead head the flowers but you MUST leave the leaves on. The plants will continue to create food via photosynthesis and they need to store it in the bulb so they can rebloom next year. A while back there was a trend where folks would bend leaves over and rubber band them. I don't know who's idea that was but don't do it. It looks bad and it's not good for the plant. 

Choose a location with good drainage (water rots bulbs) and plant the bulbs 2-6 inches deep depending on how large the bulb is (the bigger the deeper it goes). I like to plant spring bulbs behind herbaceous perennials so as the leaves die back naturally, they are hidden from view by the other plants. 

The only exception to all of this are pansies. They aren't bulbs at all but cold tolerant annuals. You can keep them in the pot they came in or plant them out in the garden right away. They will not enjoy the warmth of your house for very long. Just know that even if you plant them out, they will brown up this summer when it gets too hot. It's just their way. 

So, that's all there is to it. You can really get a lot out of these plants with just a little effort. Do you have spring flowers blooming? Feel free to share about them below!