Photo by thebittenword.com on FlickrPaperwhites are members of the daffodil family that can be grown indoors for winter flowers. The great thing about paperwhites is that they can be grown with no chilling period. The process is really easy, too. We'll go through it step by step and I'll also show you a cool trick to make them grow healthy and strong.
Although paperwhites aren't properly called daffodils, their classification is narcissus tazetta . I'm not really sure why it's incorrect to refer to a paperwhite as a daffodil but that's what The American Daffodil Society says so I'm going with that. Whatever you call them, they will provide beautiful flowers for your windowsill in the middle of the gloomiest winter day.
To get paperwhite bulbs started, get a shallow bowl or flowerpot and add an inch or two of light sandy soil or pebbles. You can buy containers made especially for growing paperwhites but this isn't necessary. Any shallow clear glass or plastic container will work fine. Make sure the planting medium covers the bottom of the container. Then set the bulbs right on top of this first layer.It's okay to pack them tightly and let them touch each other. An odd number of three or five bulbs makes a nice bold display. After the bulbs are arranged the way you want them add just enough soil or pebbles to anchor them in place. Make sure their necks are not covered. You want the roots to grow downward towards moisture. You do not want the bulb to be sitting in water.
If your budget allows it's nice to plant a new pot of paperwhite bulbs every week or so to have blooms continuously for the rest of the winter. It's a little late for Christmas blooms this year but if you start some bulbs now they will be blooming in about a month. Wouldn't that brighten up your January and help you start the New Year off right?
Pickle Your Paperwhites To Make Them Stronger
One of the most annoying things about paperwhites is the need to stake them. When they are grown in a warm indoor environment they tend to have long spindly leaves and flower stems that flop right over if they aren't tied to a wire or wooden stake. There is a way around that though.
For the pickling method you need to use a clear container and pebbles,stones or marbles as your planting medium. Add just enough water at planting to give the roots some moisture to reach for. Don't fill the container with water. This will cause your bulbs to rot. If the water evaporates add more until you see roots growing from the bottom of the bulbs. At this point you want to empty the water from the container and add a new solution to the pot that consists of seven parts water to one part hard liquor. What? Liquor? That's right. You can add any hard liquor to the water and your paperwhites will grow short stout stems instead of tall skinny ones that flop over before the blooms open. This doesn't harm them in any way. In fact it doesn't affect the flowering at all. This water and booze solution is what you'll give them every time they need water.
Although paperwhites aren't properly called daffodils, their classification is narcissus tazetta . I'm not really sure why it's incorrect to refer to a paperwhite as a daffodil but that's what The American Daffodil Society says so I'm going with that. Whatever you call them, they will provide beautiful flowers for your windowsill in the middle of the gloomiest winter day.
To get paperwhite bulbs started, get a shallow bowl or flowerpot and add an inch or two of light sandy soil or pebbles. You can buy containers made especially for growing paperwhites but this isn't necessary. Any shallow clear glass or plastic container will work fine. Make sure the planting medium covers the bottom of the container. Then set the bulbs right on top of this first layer.It's okay to pack them tightly and let them touch each other. An odd number of three or five bulbs makes a nice bold display. After the bulbs are arranged the way you want them add just enough soil or pebbles to anchor them in place. Make sure their necks are not covered. You want the roots to grow downward towards moisture. You do not want the bulb to be sitting in water.
If your budget allows it's nice to plant a new pot of paperwhite bulbs every week or so to have blooms continuously for the rest of the winter. It's a little late for Christmas blooms this year but if you start some bulbs now they will be blooming in about a month. Wouldn't that brighten up your January and help you start the New Year off right?
Pickle Your Paperwhites To Make Them Stronger
One of the most annoying things about paperwhites is the need to stake them. When they are grown in a warm indoor environment they tend to have long spindly leaves and flower stems that flop right over if they aren't tied to a wire or wooden stake. There is a way around that though.
For the pickling method you need to use a clear container and pebbles,stones or marbles as your planting medium. Add just enough water at planting to give the roots some moisture to reach for. Don't fill the container with water. This will cause your bulbs to rot. If the water evaporates add more until you see roots growing from the bottom of the bulbs. At this point you want to empty the water from the container and add a new solution to the pot that consists of seven parts water to one part hard liquor. What? Liquor? That's right. You can add any hard liquor to the water and your paperwhites will grow short stout stems instead of tall skinny ones that flop over before the blooms open. This doesn't harm them in any way. In fact it doesn't affect the flowering at all. This water and booze solution is what you'll give them every time they need water.
This has been a well documented way to keep paperwhites short without the need for staking. No one including Cornell researchers who performed the pickling experiment several years ago seems to know why this works, only that it does. It doesn't really matter what type of liquor you use but I would recommend a clear liquor such as gin, vodka or everclear rather than a dark strong smelling liquor like rum or whiskey. You can also use isopropyl or rubbing alcohol but you'll need to increase the dilution rate to one part alcohol to ten parts water.
For some great paperwhite bulbs and kits for sale check out Paperwhite Narcissus For Indoor Blooms All Winter Long.
Next we'll talk more about growing paperwhites.
Next we'll talk more about growing paperwhites.
Narcissus on Brown II
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Lovell, Katherine
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