Carnegie White Hyacinth Bulbs

Hyacinthus Orientalis Carnegie

The Carnegie hyacinth is a pure white hyacinth whose compact spire of single, snowy, bell-shaped, recurving flowers are a much loved friend to any hyacinth lover. It flowers slightly later than other white hyacinths like 'White Pearl' and also has brighter and lighter green leaves. As with all hyacinths, its great feature is the wonderful perfume it exudes. White hyacinths have a slightly less overpowering, more delicate but nonetheless alluring scent. For a really knock-your-socks off scent, try the Hyacinth Delft Blue. Either works in the downstairs loo and could save a fortune in scented candles. See our the full variety of hyacinth bulbs available to order online.

A versatile bulb for a border or pot

Hyacinths can be forced to bloom in mid-winter by growing them indoors so that you can enjoy their fragrance and beauty close up. They tend to grow slightly taller inside and will need to be supported with a small cane or by tying some string around the leaves and flower spike as they emerge. Try to use odd numbers in your planter - somehow it always looks better. Carnegie will look good with almost any other hyacinth, but consider teaming it up with Hyacinth City of Haarlem for a really pretty yellow and white riff. And for the florists out there, hyacinths are brilliant in flower arrangements or bouquets. Add a tiny bit of bleach to the water to ensure that they look at their best for as long as possible.

Outside, hyacinths perform best in the open and can be used en masse as part of a formal bedding scheme or at the front of an herbaceous border. If you have grown a hyacinth indoors one year, plant the deadheaded bulb outside and with a little bit of t.l.c. it will flower again in years to come.

Features of Hyacinthus Orientalis Carnegie

• Colour: White
• Height: 25cm
• Spread: 10 cm
• Scent: heady, voluptuous
• Flowering Outside: late Spring. Please note these are not treated bulbs - which we do not sell - and so will never flower as early indoors as treated bulbs do.
• Bulb Size: 6 cm
• Planting Depth: 10 - 12 cm
• Planting Months: September to December

Digressions on Carnegie and Hyacinth

Weirdly, hyacinths and asparagus are members of the same botanical family.

The world renowned Carnegie concert hall in New York was built by the Victorian philanthropist and industrialist Andrew Carnegie who had left Scotland for the opportunities of America. The Carnegie clan are one of the lowland clans that boast a Clan chief to this day and it is the family name of the Dukes of Fife and Earls of Southesk. It would be nice to think that this hyacinth was named after some pure, Scottish burn or even after that elusive white heather so sought after in Scotland.

Our Potted Bulbs A 1 litre pot contains approximately:

• 10 small bulbs: anemones, crocus, dwarf daffodils, iris reticulata etc or
• 5 large bulbs: hyacinths, daffodils, tulips

Like all Hyacinths, Carnegie bulbs love good drainage and so if you do not have a light soil then plant each bulb at least 10 cm deep on an inch of grit in September to December outside. Hyacinths also like a good baking in the summer and a cold snap in the winter so they do best in full sunshine. In the spring give them a potash feed to help with bulb and flower formation.