Paperwhites – December birth flower
The December birth flowers (two of them for this month) are Holly and Paperwhite Narcissus. This article will focus on Paperwhite Narcissus. Paperwhites (Jonquil) are members of the genus Narcissus. Paperwhites are hardy only in garden zones 8 and above, so here they are annual bulbs and often sold around the holidays for forced blooms in the winter. They are called paperwhites because most varieties have bright white flowers, but some varieties can have yellow blooms.
Paperwhite blooms are small, can be single or double, and are clustered together. I feel the number one thing that must be taken into account when purchasing paperwhite bulbs is the scent. Different varieties have different scents in various strengths. The smell is subjective and sometimes hard to describe, but I wouldn’t categorize it as being a floral fragrance. Most are described as “strong musky” or “citrus-like”. The variety “Ziva”, which I’ve seen in many stores around the holidays, has a VERY strong scent that can overpower a room and is not tolerated by most people. My recommendation is to source the bulbs from a supplier that will give descriptions of the scent and make your choice keeping in mind the scent is still subjective. I ordered paperwhite bulbs “Wintersun” online and the scent was described as “sweet fragrance”. As soon as the flowers bloomed, I found the scent to be strong within 1 foot or so of the blooms. To me it smells of overripe (almost going bad) citrus. If the smell was any stronger I wouldn’t be able to tolerate it.
All paperwhites need to bloom is light and water. For that reason, the bulbs are often forced in shallow dishes of rocks and water. I grew paperwhites in a clear glass bowl with rocks and found this was an easy way to see the roots and how fast they were growing. Most paperwhites can get very tall (some up to 24 inches) and need support to keep from flopping. However, there is a tested technique that can be used to get shorter stems. As crazy as it sounds, it’s using a diluted alcohol solution. I tried this and it worked well.
Place rocks in a shallow bowl. Add tap water so it just comes above the rocks. Add the bulbs, placed close together, then add more rocks around them to hold them in place. You want the water barely touching the base of the bulbs (where the roots will form). When roots have formed and the stems are about 1-2 inches tall, carefully pour out the water and add an alcohol-water solution.
The alcohol needs to be a hard liquor like gin, vodka, tequila, etc. Do not use beer or wine. Rubbing alcohol can also be used.The solution must be 4-6% alcohol, no higher. Here is some math to get the dilution rate.Bottles of liquor will list “proof” but this isn’t a percentage. Divide the proof in half, so an 80 proof alcohol would be 40% alcohol. Then divide the percentage of alcohol by 5 and subtract 1. So 40 divided by 5 is 8, subtract 1 and you have 7. This tells you to use 7 parts water to 1 part alcohol for your watering solution. Use this solution to water to the container as it evaporates, but keep the water at the roots, do not submerge the bulbs.
Warm temps and low light can also affect the stems and how long the blooms will last. Placing the container in a bright cool location will help the blooms last longer.Paperwhites generally flower within 3-4 weeks of planting. Because these bulbs are forced bloomed, they will not bloom again so discard the bulbs when they are done.