Enjoy a White Christmas! Forcing Paperwhite Bulbs
A fun and easy Christmas project to start at the beginning of November is forcing paperwhite bulbs (Narcissus papyraceus). Paperwhites belong to the Narcissus tazetta group and their flowers resemble small sprays of white daffodils on one or more stems per bulb. Paperwhite flowers produce a distinctive fragrance that you either love or hate. What side you are on is only determined by forcing a few bulbs into flower. The paperwhite varieties used for forcing are predominantly white but others come in pale yellow or yellow-white cultivars.
What is ‘forcing’?
Forcing means to grow a bulb that produces flowers out of season; usually after a period of chilling. Bulbs that can be forced are amaryllis, tulips, crocus, mini iris (Iris reticulate), daffodils, grape hyacinths and fragrant hyacinths.
Unlike other bulbs used for forcing, paperwhites do not need to be exposed to a chilling period or simulated winter. These bulbs are native to Greece, Portugal, Morocco and Algeria so do not need to be chilled to bloom. Because of this, they can be grouped in a decorative pot with little fuss and started right away.
There are two methods used to force paperwhites:
Soil Forcing Method
Choose a plastic container that has drainage holes and a catch basin for draining water. This also allows you to water from the bottom of the pot. You can insert all of this into a decorative ceramic container which provides added stability. Provide a shallow layer of tropical plant soil mixed with a cactus succulent soil mix for fast drainage (10-14 cm. of soil in the pot.) Remove the outer brown onion skin husk from each bulb and settle them on the top of the soil pointed end up leaving about 2.5 cm between each bulb. The tips should be just peeking over the rim of the pot. Water with warm water from below. At this time you can add a shallow layer of decorative stone to the top around the bulbs or lay a covering of sphagnum moss around the rim of the decorative ceramic pot to finish off the look. Keep the soil moist but do not saturate it. Too much water results in root rot.
If you have a cool bright room in your home, place the planted bulb container in that room for about one to two weeks. When roots begin to form, you can move the container out to a bright warmer room.
Plant a new pot of paperwhites every ten days for continuous bloom through the Christmas season.
Water Planting Method
Choose a container that does not have drainage holes. Most people choose low glass containers so they can watch the rooting process. Antique crystal bowls are especially classy and provide some weight for stability as well. Fill about half way up the bowl with small grade rock, marbles, clear or colored crystals. If you use rock, wash it first before adding to the bowl to avoid cloudy water. Remove the outer onion skin husk from each bulb. Place the bulbs (pointed end up) on top of the rock/crystals. Put in just enough warm water so that it almost touches the bases of the bulbs. Keep the water at this level until roots start to form. Do not let them sit in the water; they will rot. Once the roots have formed, lower the water level again, so just the roots are in the water. Place the container in a cool bright room for one to two weeks as the roots form. When roots are showing, bring it back out into a bright warm room to watch them grow and produce their beautiful blooms.
All in all it usually takes from 4 to 6 weeks from ‘planting’ for the flowers to begin to bloom.
The warmer the home, the faster forced bulbs will bloom. Cooler temperatures are always recommended for prolonged bloom time.
Forced paperwhites often get very tall and floppy. A bulb researcher from Cornell University, Bill Miller, discovered a way to keep forced bulbs from stretching and getting out of hand. When using the water planting method, use plain water until the roots appear. Pour the clear water off and add water again with an alcohol/water mix. Use one part isopropyl alcohol to 10 parts water or 1 part gin or vodka to 7 parts water. Do not over-do the alcohol – too much will kill the bulbs. In about a month the shorter stems will bloom! When they begin to bloom switch the alcohol mix out for clear water again.
The good news is that this water/alcohol mix only affects the height, reducing it by 1/3 of the normal height. Fragrance and blooms are not affected.
As far as I know, the alcohol height control method has not been used on paperwhites planted in soil. If any of my readers have done this please let me know the results in the comments section below!
Decorate your paperwhite bowls with tiny decorative lights, submersible LED lights, green/red crystals, clear crystals, tiny pinecones or small Christmas tree ball ornaments. Use curly willow or red osier dogwood branches to support tall stems and flowers.
When forced, a paperwhite bulb will have used up all its stored energy growing and flowering. It will have very little hope of surviving later in the next growing season. You can dispose of them in the compost bin.