PAPERWHITES
I have a love/hate relationship with paperwhites, those non-hardy narcissus whose bulbs are on sale everywhere starting about now. When they bloom, these relatives of the common daffodil are lovely and winsome–a harbinger of spring at a dark time of year. Buying them always seems like a good idea in October, which is when I usually get the urge to order a batch for holiday gifts and winter cheer. In fact, paperwhites seem like such a good idea that I generally order way too many and end up scrounging around for suitable vessels and a large supply of pebbles to accommodate the fast-sprouting bulbs.
The other well-documented problem is the smell. The most common paperwhite on the market is a modern variety called ‘Ziva,’ developed in Israel, where paperwhite culture is a thriving industry. ‘Ziva”s blossoms, which grow several to a stem, are pure white. The fragrance has a certain quality, often described as “musky”, which is appealing to some noses and repulsive to others. ‘Ziva’ smells fine to me, but my daughter, for example, can’t stand it because she thinks it smells like cat urine. She cannot bear to be in the same room with ‘Ziva’ blossoms–even if the space is as large as a ballroom.
In the interest of family harmony, I promised my daughter that I would not buy any more ‘Ziva’. However, last year, I decided to buy another variety, ‘Inbal,’ which is creamier in color than ‘Ziva,’ and reputedly has a more palatable fragrance. I had high hopes for Inbal, but my daughter found the fragrance only marginally better than ‘Ziva’. It didn’t produce nausea, but it didn’t give her any pleasure either.
So this year I am going to try another variety or two–or possibly even three. There has to be at least one that can beautify the house without offending the family, and I intend to find it. ‘Ziva’ has some Israeli-bred cousins, including ‘Galilee’, ‘Israel,’ ‘Jerusalem’ and ‘Nazareth’. ‘Galilee’ and ‘Jerusalem’ are also pure white, while ‘Israel’ and ‘Nazareth’ have yellow cups and white petals. The problem is that all of them also boast the same musky smell as Ziva with greater or lesser degrees of intensity. All four are beautiful, but if I order any of them, I will have to arrange it so that they will bloom in the New Year, after my daughter has returned to college.
Older varieties may work better. I like the looks of ‘Grande Soleil D’or’, which has pale yellow petals and small orange cups. The catalog from Brent and Becky’s Bulbs describes the smell as “delicate” and “sweet”, not adjectives that I would normally associate with the smell of cat urine. The double form of ‘Grande Soleil D’or’ is ‘Golden Rain’, which has a mass of gold petals, and, hopefully, the same pleasant aroma. I am also partial to Constantinople, a double flowered variety that looks as if its saffron yellow cup exploded into a cloud of diminutive petals which intermingle in a lovely jumble with the white outer petals. ‘Constantinople’ is a double form of the ‘Chinese Sacred Lily’, which has an intact yellow cup and demure white outer petals. The fragrance is described as “wonderful”, though the catalog also has a caveat that the ‘Chinese Sacred Lily’ needs staking and is less free flowering than some other paperwhite varieties.
Technically paperwhites are cultivated varieties of tazetta narcissus or Narcissus tazetta, which originated in the Mediterranean and the Middle East. The plants are distinguished by their sensitivity to cold and the fact that each stem bears several flowers. Tazettas are generally fragrant and can be grown outdoors in the American South, where the old-fashioned varieties have long been popular. A March 1995 article by Theodore Stephenson, Ouida Trammell Stephenson and John C. Beck in The American Daffodil Society’s publication, The Daffodil Journal (V.31, No.3, pages 162-165), describes the thriving paperwhite industry that flourished in Florida from the late 1920’s until the Second World War. Not only did farmers raise the bulbs for sale, but cut paperwhites were also shipped out of state, especially to the northeast, where they were in demand for funeral arrangements.
Paperwhites’ perennial popularity has much to do with the fact that they are amazingly easy to grow. Unlike other spring-blooming bulbs, they don’t have to be chilled before being “forced” indoors. As soon as possible after the bulbs arrive, fill a shallow container with large pebbles partially submerged in water. Set the bulbs atop the pebbles and place in a sunny spot. Make sure that you maintain the water level in the container, but do not submerge any part of the bulbs or they will rot. The bulbs’ roots will reach towards the water and growth should start within a few days.
Once the bulbs have bloomed and the flowers have faded, don’t be afraid to compost the spent bulbs. Unlike hyacinths, tulips and the hardier daffodil varieties, paperwhites will not bloom again the following year and cannot survive outside in areas that have freezing winters.
If you are looking for paperwhites and want something other than ‘Ziva’, go to Brent and Becky’s Bulbs, 7900 Daffodil Lane, Gloucester, VA, 23061, (804 693-3966, www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com. Free catalog.