Beat the winter blues with one of the gardener’s most-loved autumn rituals—forcing. As you put the garden to bed, think about potting up your favorite bulbs. I’ll tell you which bulbs (and branches) make good specimens for forcing, and why. Then I’ll get into the nitty-gritty of planting and tricking your tulips, daffodils and more to bloom in winter! Once you know the tricks of the trade, you be a seasoned forcer, and your winter blues will be replaced with rich colors and heavenly scents.

About Kelly Orzel
I’m a small-scale, organic herb farmer, author and speaker growing in coastal Maine. You can find me in the greenhouse, looking slightly rumpled. Besides dirt, I’m obsessed with bread and cheese, over-sized sweaters and Jane Austen novels.
At heart I’m a teacher (I taught high school math for 6 years), so get ready to sow and grow like a pro! Want to become a master seed-starter and propagator? I’m your girl. Do you have a love affair with show-stopping dahlias and ready to take your flower patch to the next level? I can teach you how. Or are you ready to become a vegetable garden boss and grow a pantry-full of food? Well, then you’re in the right place!
Since 2012, I’ve spoken at over 300 events all over New England to home garden enthusiasts like you. And, as a self-confessed garden geek and bibliophile, I can’t wait to share with you everything I’ve experienced and learned.
When I’m not digging in soil, I’m wholeheartedly excited about teaching others how to grow the garden of their dreams. Over the past 20 years I’ve worked as a horticulturist on a 70-acre farm, dabbled in plant biotechnology, earned my masters in Horticulture, volunteer as a Maine Master Gardener and owned my own herb farm. And I really want to share everything I know with you!