Growing Paperwhites

Back in December I was perusing the aisles of Christmas Tree Shops, and spending entirely too much money, as I am always wont to do there. :-) But I came across a little box labeled "Paperwhites" and I practically threw them in my cart. See, last spring I had made myself a little note to remind me to find a batch of paperwhites to grow once the snow and cold cut me off from my garden.



So I popped them into a little metal planter that I had sprayed a nice crisp white, and set them in a "sunny" place. Which in our town, in winter, means a brighter location than most. We don't see a lot of sun here. :-)  And they immediately started growing. And by immediately, I mean the very next day I saw green. They grew as much as an inch a day, and it was so fun to watch something grow, while everything outside froze up and was covered in snow.

The little buds came up about two weeks in, and then took another two weeks to bloom. The plants grew up to over a foot tall, so I eventually had to tie them together so they wouldn't fall over. I think a deeper planter may have helped remedy this problem, but I was using what I had. Watering was a breeze, the peat moss that came with the kit would turn a light brown when it was dry, so I knew I needed to add water. And so I waited impatiently for the flowers to finally bloom. And just after Christmas they did.



And they STANK! They stank to high heaven. They smelled so bad that when you walked into the room you looked around for the pile of garbage that must have been putrefying for months. It was awful. I persevered for as long as I could, but I ended up cutting them down, throwing them away and vowing to never grow paperwhites again. :-)



Of course, after some research, I found that there are all different breeds of paperwhites, so I am sure that there are some that do not smell like vomit. But next year I think I am just going to find me some hyacinths and daffodils, and force those inside. Much more pleasant I would say. :-)

What about you? Have you ever grown paperwhites, or forced spring bulbs? I'd love to hear if you grew a non-smelly variety. :-)