As promised, I will now try to tell you something about the Gloxinia .

Gloxinia Defiance

But I must first point out that the Dahlias are available again in our webshop. And of course also the Gloxinia , the Zantedeschia , the Begonia and all kinds of other sweets for the garden lover.

Dahlia Jowey Chantal

Last week I also said that I don't like to chase you, but really, the Dahlia is hot. Chances are that if you wait until the weather is nice enough to work in the garden, there are a lot of products with those horrible orange bars with 'sold out'.

Dahlia Kelsey Sunshine

'Isn't it much too early for Dahlias ' you may wonder. A fair question, the reason we offer Dahlias so early is that there are many Dahlia lovers who prefer Dahlias. Oh, is the Dahlia up first than the rest, is the little princess being favoured again, how silly. No, that is not what is meant in this case, this favouring of Dahlias is getting Dahlias to grow earlier. Some people do that, you know, those gardeners whose gardens are always beautiful and where everything always seems to grow by itself and where everything always works out, yes exactly, those people.

Dahlia Roban Regal

But it sounds more complicated than it is, forcing it is actually very easy. What you do is put the Dahlia tuber in a pot with a dash of potting soil and put it somewhere in a light room where it is about 15 degrees. A little warmer or a bit colder, no problem. Take a pot with holes in the bottom so that excess water can always drain away and keep the mud in the pot moist. You will see that the Dahlias will quickly produce roots and growth shoots. Around the end of April, put the pot outside, not immediately in full sun, so that the Dahlia can harden off. If there is a risk of night frost, put the pot back inside, the young shoots cannot withstand frost. When the risk of night frost has passed, carefully remove the tuber from the pot and plant it in the garden where you want it.

Dahlis Irish Pinwheel

If you do this, your Dahlia will certainly bloom a month earlier and you can enjoy its flowers even longer. Because you know, no flower bulb blooms as gratefully as the Dahlia . When autumn comes, it goes under, fighting the bad weather, and it keeps trying to poop flowers out of it until the frost. Oops, this is a comment that Marise will respond to. Last week I used the comment 'peeing next to the pot' and one of our dear Flemish customers Marise responded to that by saying that in Belgium this still means cheating. That, of course we don't know that in North Holland. But hey, learned something new and good that I know.

Aren't they beautiful, Daffodils?

But I digress, the Dahlia . If you do not want to plant the Dahlia yet, store it in a cool place at 5 to 10 degrees Celsius. Leave it in the bag in which it is packed, this is porous plastic so that it continues to have oxygen and does not dry out. If you do take it out of the bag, wrap it in newspaper, wood chips or dry peat so that the tuber is protected from drying out. When the chance of night frost has passed, you can plant it in the garden.

Gloxinia violacaea

Now it finally arrives; the forgotten tuber among flower bulbs: the Gloxinia . It simply cannot be more old-fashioned or frumpy than a Gloxinia. This is really a plant that the older ones among us may have heard our grandmothers talk about or, if they are lucky, may have even seen one bloom in the distant past. Why we feed them, I will explain. Secretly I think the Gloxinia is beautiful. Don't tell anyone. And, they are grown nearby in the greenhouse by the Kolken company that also supplies us with the Begonias.

Suzanne between the Begonia On Top Pink Halo

When I was there last summer, Suzanne (Suzanne does the sales) took me to the greenhouse where the 'On Top' Begonias were and where the Gloxinias were, and it was beautiful. That is also something for the Fluwel webshop, Suzanne tried to convince me. Now Suzanne is not someone you can just say no to, she is much too nice for that, but to be honest I thought they were beautiful. Beautiful soft plants with a high cuddly factor and sparkling colors that came from flowers that seemed to be made of satin. Absolutely beautiful.

Gloxinia Kaiser Wilhelm

So that's why the Gloxinia , I hope you fall in love with it as much as I do. It is a houseplant, not for the garden or terrace, and on our site you can read how to grow it to achieve a good result. Don't think about it, just do it, it's great fun.