"Spring passes and one remembers one's innocence.
  Summer passes and one remembers one's exuberance.
  Autumn passes and one remembers once reverence.
  Winter passes and one remembers one's perseverance."      Yoko Ono

After the thirty plus inches of snow here in New England, I can personally see how you need to stay steadfast and persevere.  Only 51 days till Spring!
Speaking of spring, I am beginning to bring out my bulbs that I have been forcing inside and thought I would blog about how to grow buibs inside.
Growing bulbs indoors lets you enjoy the color and fragrance of spring when it's months way.  The key to sucess with indoor forced bulbs is to plan ahead!  Many people do not know how to force bulbs indoor or that there are two types of bulbs for inside growing. The first is the ones  you need to chill and the others are those you don't chill. The non-chilling ones are the easiest to force.  The non-chill bulbs are native to warm climates, so don't need a chilling period to force inside.  The bulbs that are in this category are:

Amaryllis (bulbs 6-8 weeks after planting), Paperwhites (blooms 3-5 weeks after planting).  Both can be brought at a local gardening center or on-line at a site like www.gurney.com.

Bulbs requiring  chilling are:
Tulips ( chill 14-20 weeks to bloom) , large flowering Crocus ( chill 15 weeks to bloom), Hyacinthis (chill 11-14 weeks to bloom).

Chilling spring bulbs are stimulated by a biochemical response inside the bulb that "turns on" the embroyonic flower.  Plant the bulbs in pots with soil and keep in an area of 35-45 degrees ( cold frame, unheated basement or garage) for the entire cooling period.  Keep soil moist, but not wet for the entire chilling period.  To flower in January plant in September, for February blooms plant in mid-October and for March blooms plant in early November.  As I said earlier, forcing bulbs requires advance planning!

It maybe too late to force bulbs today, but you can mark your fall calander for next year.   As part of my cancer care, this advanced planning gives me incentive to care for myself by making my doctor appointments, eating  well and keeping my spirits high. I want to be here next year to see my bulbs bloom!  Please do the same for yourself and loved ones.