Indoor gardening with bulbs gives us the opportunity to have spring color and fragrances in the middle of winter. There are two types of bulbs for indoor gardening, or any type of gardening, and they are ones that need to be chilled first and the ones that do not need to be chilled.  

This is a good time to talk about the ones we need not chill. These particular bulbs are warmer climate natives and are generally the paperwhite narcissus bulbs and the amaryllis bulbs. Both these bulbs have the capacity of growing with or without potting soil. Growing with soil is self explanatory but without soil is another matter. They can be grown in a shallow container that is filled with pebbles or marbles and this is mainly for holding the bulb. Then all you need to do is add water. If you want to keep the stems sturdy and short start out by putting the container in indirect light and the temperature at about 50 degrees F. for the beginning few weeks. Little by little raise the temperature and put them in a brighter light. You should place enough water in the container to cover about 1/3 of the bulb.  

The amaryllis bulb produces one of the most beautiful flowers to be grown as a houseplant. These flowers are large and their shape is very similar to a trumpet with very attractive colors such as pink, peach, white, and bright reds. Some of them even have striped petals. These flowers can have the resemblence of being foreign but are easy to grow.  

When purchasing amaryllis bulbs make sure they are plump and of good size and have some roots attached. The potting container needs to be half-again as wide and you need to use a sterile potting mix and with the potting mix the top 1/3 of the bulb needs to be exposed. This ensures that when water is added to the container it does not seep down the neck of the bulb. The soil should not be kept wet but moist and above 64 degrees F.  

Place these bulbs that are planted in soil in bright light. Once a couple of weeks have passed you should be able to see some flower buds. You also need to have room in the container to insert a support stake for the stem will get very tall. Turning the container on a regular basis will prevent the stalk from leaning in one direction. You will need to stake the plant once the flower opens up because it will become very top-heavy.  

Paperwhite narcissus bulbs should be bought by the dozen or so; this way you can plant them every three weeks or so through February. You should place the extra bulbs in a dry cool place until it is time to plant them. Paperwhites are very easy to grow indoors with or without soil. Their clusters of white flowers have a very pleasant fragrance.

Planting paperwhites is very easy to do without soil. They will grow with marbles or medium sized pebbles in a shallow container, or in a tall vase with large pebbles or rocks, and of course they can be grown in soil. They look better if you crowd them together in a container. A shallow covering of rocks, marbles, pebbles, or soil needs to place in your container. Place the bulbs on top of the medium and then proceed to cover the bulbs with the same until only the bulb tips are exposed.  

Water the plant until it comes to the base of the bulbs; the planting medium keeps the bulbs at the right level of moisture. Now you can place the container of bulbs in a sunny location and remember to give it water occasionally. If your bulbs were planted in early fall you most likely waited a while before they bloomed. If you plant more near New Year they will bloom in a shorter time span. The paperwhite flower buds keep on developing even if they have not been planted. These flowers also need to be staked because the stems get very tall and like the amaryllis will get top-heavy when blooming.