Paperwhites

One of my favorite flower is the paperwhite (the smaller flower in the picture). Mainly because its probably the only flower I have been successful with and it can be grown indoors during the winter season! :) Here is a quick how to on forcing paperwhite bulbs. I love growing mine in a bed of rocks.

Select a container that is about 3 - 4 inches deep (8 - 10 cm) and that has no drainage holes.
Spread an inch or 2 of stones, marbles or even gravel, along the bottom of the container.

Position your paper white bulbs, pointed end up, on top of the stone layer. Go ahead and squeeze them in. They not only look better in a large group, the tight fit will help keep them from toppling over.

Add another layer of stones to fill in any gaps and cover the bulbs up to their shoulders. The pointed tips should still be showing.

Add water so that the level just reaches the base of the bulbs. Allowing the bottom of the bulb to sit in water will stimulate growth. Covering the entire bulb with water could cause it to rot.
The bulbs don’t need light at this point and they prefer to be kept on the cool side, at about 65 degrees F (18 degrees C.)

Check your bulbs daily to see if they need more water.

When you see roots developing, move the container to a sunny window. The sunnier the better, but try not to let them get too warm or they’ll grow leggy.