Hmm, what holiday is coming up soon? Thanksgiving, but I have not seen any Thanksgiving decorations anywhere. Halloween is over. Oh yes, it is Christmas! We have been bombarded with Christmas specials since July. How can one even feel festive when the temperatures are still in the 90s or the eighties?

It is November, now is the time to think of end of the year gifts, more angst. Make it easy on yourself to give something you are interested in, a gift from your hands and your heart, a living plant. Give the gift of a potted Paperwhite plant. It is the gift that will bring smiles and warmth to whomever you gift it to.

You will need:

1)      Paperwhite bulbs

2)      a pot that can hold 1-2 bulbs and has drainage hole(s)

3)      Planting soil

4)      Moss or decorative bark or decorative pebbles

I have been successful doing these four steps:

1)      Optional refrigerate your bulbs 4-6 days before planting.

2)      Add an inch of potting soil to your pots.

3)      Put 1 or 2 bulbs in your pot.

4)      Cover the bulbs with soil leaving one” below the rim of the pot.

5)      Put the moss, pebbled or bark on top of the soil.

6)      Water and keep moist.

It is okay if you do not chill the bulbs, they will just sprout a little sooner. The end of November is ideal to start this gift. At Christmas it will already be showing growth.

Have a great Thanksgiving and give the gift of sunshine and fragrance to someone special for Christmas a blooming paperwhite!