Protecting and Pruning Hyacinth is GardenWise
Hyacinth is a beautiful flower born of a tragedy that became a well known Greek myth — Hyacinth was the athletic youth was beloved by both Apollo and Zephyrus, the bringer of spring and summer breezes. After his accidential death, Apollo kept Hyacinth from Hades and the underworld by making a flower from his blood, the Hyacinth.
A great story, and a good reason to spend a little extra time keeping your Hyacinth in top shape, which will require a small amount of work. The main maintenance task is called deadheading. Deadheading is simply pinching off old blooms to encourage new growth and transfer energy from making seeds. However, if you bought a self-sowing variety do not deadhead because you will lose the seeds.
The only other concerns for hyacinth bulbs is the occasional animal or rodent. If you notice missing bulbs and see signs of them being dug up, put up a barrier or fence to discourage intruders. If no signs of digging around missing bulbs are apparent then you may have a rodent problem. In this case you can protect the bulb by simply digging it up and putting a wire mesh in the hole to surround the bulb.
