Is it possible to have pink or blue flowers on your hyacinths just by watering with a special solution?

Question

I believe this was done for hyacinths purchased in a pot for the house but I wonder if it can be done for mine in my garden and also what is the solution for watering? Thanks

Answer 1

hyacinths are a bulb and come in specific colors.  Do you by chance mean a flowering shrub named hydrangea?   nursery growers do manipulate their colors a bit, but it is a lot harder to control once they are planted in the ground.  Here is a site that explains a bit more about them.

http://www.hydrangeashydrangeas.com/colo...

Answer 2

I think you add copper sulphate to get blue flowers, but best to ask at your local plant nursery.

Answer 3

If you want bluer flowers, use an acidic fertilzer. ACE Hadware sells a fertilizer for "acid-loving plants."  The higher the pH of your soil, the morem pink your hyacinths will be.I  

Answer 4

I think you mean 'Hydrangeas' and not 'Hyacinth'

The next-door neighbours have a pink & blue

hydrangeas in bloom, but I have never found out

why it flowers the two-tone way.

Answer 5

I have never heard of “a special solution” being used with bulbs to change their color but using chemicals to change the color of a hydrangea flower is a practice sometimes used.

If the pH of the soil is acidic you can change pink flowers to blue flowers and if the soil pH is alkaline, blue flowers will turn pink. This DOES NOT work with all hydrangeas.

Sometimes hydrangeas will morph by themselves depending on the soil conditions - or a hydrangea that had a colored flower may turn white.

True white hydrangea cultivars will always stay white – they cannot be changed.  

What you could try to do with your hyacinth bulbs is add “food-grade” food coloring to the water you are watering the bulbs with after they break the soil in spring. They may take up the color and have veining that matched the color you added to the water (this is often done with cut flowers, such as solid blue orchids or green carnations for St. Patrick’s Day). I would suggest using a dark dye on a light colored flower – such as blue or purple dye with pink or white flowers - yellow or blue dye with white flowers.

Actually, try any color combination – if it works – you will have the most unique looking hyacinths in town.