Well-ventilated space

The perennial Tuberose flowers have been used in perfume making since the Middle Ages and in Indian cultures no ritual or ceremony is complete without offerings of this beautiful flower.

They grow about 24 inches high, with light green leaves and fragrant waxy white flowers along the stalks which bloom primarily during the night. They are actually quite easy to grow and propagate through bulbs (also seeds but flowers with sterile seeds don’t set), so if you want some to make your garden smell like a trip to the Orient then get to it!

The bulbs can be planted in late winter, but it can work in early spring or summer too.

Choose a spot with well-drained soil, as the Tuberose prefer drier soils to moist ones, dig a hole so that you can plant more bulbs, leaving them with the tip at soil level, and mix it with plenty of organic compost, ground bark, peat moss or manure. The bulbs should be 12 inches apart from each other. When done water them well once and leave them until the tips of the sprouts emerge – but don’t leave them to dry out completely; begin watering them sparingly and you can add a bit of light liquid fertilizer but not close to the clumps.

If you want them in bouquets or flower arrangements, you should cut only ¾ of the stalk and never the leaves. Once every 2 or 3 years you can divide the bulbs, but if you want to dig them up for winter you should first leave them wither away naturally, then you can dig them, dust them, sprinkle germicide powder and store them in mesh bags in a dry, well-ventilated space.

They are vulnerable only to snails, slugs and bulb rot set by over watering.

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