A couple months ago, I put four Hyacinth bulbs in a large bowl, filled it up with rocks and water, and set it in a window. I’ve done this many times and have always had the sweet smell of Hyacinths to look forward to. But this time, a different smell arose. Less sweet perfume and more dead fish.
The trouble with having a lot of houseplants is that when a stink begins to emanate, it can be difficult to figure out which plant it’s coming from. Fortunately, my wife has a super-sniffer. She pointed right at the bowl of bulbs and said, “This one.” One gagging sniff was all it took to confirm she was right. One or more of the bulbs was rotting.
It smelled so bad, I didn’t bother to check if any of the bulbs was salvageable. I just took the entire thing outside and dumped it in the corner of the garden where I deposit old soil and plant bits. I promptly forgot about it and went on with my day.
A few weeks later, as I was dumping some other stuff in that corner, I noticed that three of the four bulbs were not only still alive, but had managed to send roots down and green shoots up. I plucked them out of the mire and gave them a proper planting in some potting soil inside. And in just a few days, they bloomed.
Now the house is full of the sweet smell of Hyacinth, making up for the previous stink. And it’s a nice reminder that nature always finds a way.