How to Force Paper-White Narcissus in Water

If you want a little taste of spring before its time, paper-white narcissus bulbs are easy to force into early, lusciously fragrant bloom. All you do is add water.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Paper-white Narcissus
• Shallow Potting Dishes

1. Purchase healthy, high-quality paper-white bulbs, free of bruises or soft spots. You can start forcing paper-whites as soon as you can buy bulbs in fall, and continue planting every two weeks until you can no longer find quality bulbs - usually late winter to spring.

2. Select a shallow dish. The best size is 12 inches wide and 1 to 2 inches deep, but almost any size will do.

3. Fill the dish with small pebbles or gravel.

4. Cover the rocks with water.

5. Place the bulbs in the dish, pointed side up, nestling the bottoms into the wet stones.

6. Place the dish in a warm, well-lighted indoor location, such as a sunny window. Keep the stones constantly wet. Paper-whites usually bloom in about six weeks.

7. After blooming, if the soil is not frozen, plant the bulbs outdoors and keep them moist.

Tips & Warnings

• Most bulbs can only be forced once. They may bloom next year, but most likely will not.
• Provide as much light as possible while foliage is growing. Once you see flower buds, you can move the dish wherever you want.
• You can also force paper-whites in bulb vases or small-mouthed jars. Simply fill the vase or jar with water, set the bulb in the top - pointed side up, so the bottom of the bulb sits in water - then place in a sunny window.
• Paper-whites are one of the few bulbs that can be forced without first being chilled. Tulips and most other spring-flowering bulbs need a cold treatment before they'll bloom.

on 1/13/2006 Find pint milk bottles at antique and garage sales for paper-white bulb forcing. People love getting them as gifts, and a tray full is an attention grabber!

on 11/22/2005 I plant my forced narcissus and hyacinth in the garden with bone meal and they come up the next year and then flower again the year after.

on 1/15/2008 Paper-whites forced in water cannot be replanted outside the garden after blooming, because water has no nutrients.