Plant of the week

PAPERWHITE NARCISSUS

Narcissus papyraceus

EUROPE’S least hardy wild narcissus flowers in autumn or early winter. Native to the Mediterranean region, they’re at their best between October and December. If grown in a bowl, in a warm room, dry bulbs can flower three weeks after planting. Long stems carry clusters of white, small-cupped narcissus flowers. They’re perfumed, filling a room with intense fragrance. This species won’t thrive outside in the UK. But as pot plants, they’re the fastest to flower. I grow mine in a bowl half-filled with gravel. Add water until the level is just below the bases of the bulbs. Their roots will soon find it.