Staring into the cavernous interior of a mostly empty refrigerator can make a person think "Maybe this refrigerator is too big for two people!" But without the extra room in the fridge, several of my gardening projects would be in big trouble.

In addition to holding pounds of produce from the veggie garden in summer, my fridge occasionally acts as host to other gardening adventures. Pony packs of newly-sown seeds, wrapped in plastic, are tucked away for a month or so to break dormancy and make them sprout. One shelf holds bulbs and rhizomes waiting to be planted at the right time. Beneficial insects sleep in limbo until the right time to release them outdoors. Pots of bulbs chill out so they will later break into bloom on the windowsill.

Right now the only gardening going on in my refrigerator is one of those narrow necked vases filled with water and topped by a hyacinth bulb. White, sinuous roots are beginning to snake down into the water, fascinating to watch. Hyacinths can be forced into bloom in these special vases that support the bulb above water, or in any low, shallow dish filled with pebbles, marble chips, or coarse sand to support them. Clear glass, of course, lets you see the water level, which needs to come up to the base of the bulb without touching it: too high and the bulb will rot, too low and it will dry out.

The best containers for forcing are about twice as deep as the bulbs and are wider than they are deep. For a dramatic fanfare of blooms, crowd bulbs closely together in the container. Position them with pointed end up, and with half the bulb exposed above the pebbles. Fill with water up to the base of the bulbs and maintain the water level by checking and replenishing when needed.

Put the glass vase or shallow dish in a cool, dark area where the temperature stays between 40°F to 50°F. Now, this obviously is where that excess room in the refrigerator comes in handy. Keep the bulbs in cold storage for 13 weeks, and restore the water level whenever necessary.

In hyacinth glasses you will soon see roots filling the vase. Later on, shoots will appear from the top of bulbs. When the chilling period has been completed and top shoots stretch an inch or two into the chilly air, put the plant in a warm room (60°F to 70°F) in filtered sunlight until the shoots turn green. Then move it into full sunlight in a south or west window to induce blooming. The color and exquisite fragrance of the blooms will last for two or three weeks.

You can use the same treatment for paperwhites which, however, do not require the chilling period, and with other bulbs such as crocus, daffodil, muscari, and tulips, which do require chilling.

Chill daffodils for ten to twelve weeks, tulips for twelve to fourteen weeks, and most others for eight to ten weeks, before moving them out into a sunny room where you will be able to enjoy them. Flowering bulbs last longest in a cool, bright area with filtered light.

Another technique, one that some gardeners think is the most successful way to force bulbs, is to go ahead and plant them in pots of soil and give them the same chilling treatment you would use with water.

Partially fill a container with commercial potting soil so that the bulb tips are almost level with the pot rim. Cover the bulbs with more soil, leaving just the tips exposed. Water and let drain. Put the pot in a plastic bag to keep the soil moist and punch a few holes for air circulation. Check the soil moisture periodically and add more if necessary.

After the appropriate chilling period, move the potted bulbs gradually into full sunlight as described above.

Joyce Schillen