How to Make Hyacinths Bloom Next Year

Sprinkle five tablespoons of 10-10-10 fertilizer over every 10 feet of hyacinth bulb after they finish flowering in late spring or early summer. Water after application so the fertilizer can soak into the soil and to rinse any fertilizer off the remaining foliage.

Water the hyacinths during dry periods if the top 1 to 2 inches of soil begins to dry. Provide about 1 inch of water weekly if there is no rainfall. Do not water the bed after the foliage dies and the bulbs go dormant in summer.

Cut off the flowers after they wilt so the plant stores nutrients in the bulb for next year instead of using them to fuel seed production. Trim back the foliage to the ground after it dies back naturally.

Dig up and divide the hyacinth bulbs after the foliage dies back if the bed has become crowded or if the bulbs flowered poorly. Twist the bulbs apart to divide, then replant them so the bulb bottom is 8 inches deep. Space the bulbs 6 inches apart. Hyacinths typically require division every three to four years to remain in flower.

Spread a 2-inch layer of mulch over the bed in fall after the first frost. Mulch protects the bulbs from temperature fluctuations and minimizes frost heave in the soil, which can damage bulbs and prevent them from returning in spring.