Hyacinth indoors- already green shoots when purchased

[DrunkenUnicorn]

I had a fit of nostalgia whilst walking through the range at the weekend, vague memories of planting hyacinth indoors with my grandmother as a very young child- I was 3.5 when she died- and bought them as an impulse. Once I got them home I googled and my memory was jogged about putting them in the dark. I’d forgotten and already potted them up.

The ones I’d bought didn’t say pre-chilled or anything. So in theory I think they would need chilling in the dark for several weeks BUT they were all sprouting green shoots and little roots were already starting to poke out of the bottom.

A lot of the stuff I’ve read online says take them out if the dark when the shoots appear... so do I skip the dark phase?

They are currently sat on my window sills... I can pop them in a dark cold spot -probably black bags in the shed?

Thank you from a complete novice.

I do not know the answer, but am bumping for you as I also have lovely memories of having hyacinths growing for Christmas time. Love the smell.

The idea of the dark is that it encourages roots, if you put them in the light, they will start pushing out the green shoots without having roots to back them up by providing nutrients. This may be because we often grow hyacinths with the bulb exposed - I'm not sure how they grow naturally, but when I plant gone-over hyacinths in my garden, I plant them a few inches down and they reappear year after year.

I don't think they need to be particularly cold, though most bulbs seem to last better if not in a centrally heated room. I usually pot up and leave in the greenhouse - I can't remember whether I make a deliberate effort to exclude light (I realised years ago that it was easier and not much more expensive to pick up about-to-flower hyacinths at Morrisons)

If your green shoots are actively growing, then skip the dark phase. But if they're just sitting there not doing much, you could put the pots in a cupboard for a while. Check them every few days. I wouldn't take them out to the shed, I'd be worried about the cold shock now they're used to being on the windowsill.