A. The process of encouraging early flowering is appropriately
called forcing. We can force plants to flower earlier than
normal by modifying temperature and light conditions after
plants have completed a necessary period of dormancy. It is
important to force spring-flowering trees and shrubs only after
the plant experiences dormancy during the cold weather. It is
okay to force some plants, such as pussywillow and forsythia, in
mid- to late January. For other plants, such as redbud, magnolia
and crab apples, you may have to wait until mid- to late
February and beyond. There are methods to overcome this dormancy
requirement, but I will adhere to the basics for this article.
The dormancy dates will vary each year, depending on outdoor
temperatures and other environmental factors. Selection and
timing Flowering trees and shrubs that will provide excellent
indoor flowers when forced include forsythia, pussywillow,
magnolia, redbud and crab apple and other fruit trees. Even red
maples will provide small reddish fl