SKU: 80697812939
paper white lily bulbs

paper white lily bulbs Old-Fashioned Paperwhites

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Description

paper white lily bulbs Old-Fashioned PaperwhitesNarcissus tazetta papyraceous Old fashioned paperwhites bloom anytime from Thanksgiving to January across the Southern United States. Some years they are spectacular, and others they are not. Sometimes you'll be waiting for a bloom and a blue norther will come through and freeze the buds (the plants themselves will be fine it can be disappointing!) However, some years they do exactly what you want them to do and they give you a winter show you've been

Narcissus tazetta papyraceous

Old fashioned paperwhites bloom anytime from Thanksgiving to January across the Southern United States. Some years they are spectacular, and others they are not. Sometimes you'll be waiting for a bloom and a blue norther will come through and freeze the buds (the plants themselves will be fine...it can be disappointing!) However, some years they do exactly what you want them to do and they give you a winter show you've been waiting for. We offer a mixture of bulb sizes of paperwhites collected from many different old locations - they generally bloom on the same schedule. We hope you enjoy! 

Did you know there used to be many, many different historic types of paperwhites? At least I've been told that, but now we're down to about 4-5 main varieties that are primarily used for forcing. (Forcing is where you can plant them in pots or in the ground and have them bloom about 5 weeks later, enabling you to time them for special occasions like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's celebrations.)

The older varieties, though, can still be found in older gardens or abandoned homesites. Here's how they differ:

  1. They generally bloom from late November through the first week of January.
  2. They aren't as compact. They're more of a free-flowering, clumping form of garden flower — don't plan on them standing at attention and blooming compact blooms like forced paperwhites do.
  3. You treat them like perennials and let them follow the same path as daffodils in your garden (they're both in the genus Narcissus) — meaning you let the foliage live and die down naturally, so you'll have greyish-green foliage through May of the next spring.

I mention all this so you know to treat these like garden perennials, not as florist-quality annuals in a showy pot or entryway to your house. Mix them with other winter-blooming bulbs like 'Grand Primo,' campernelles, and snowflakes, and plant them with perennial shrubs like salvias, plumbago, or lantana. Let the winter-blooming old-fashioned heirloom paperwhites fill the late November/December gap in perennial garden blooms, and use the fall forcing paperwhites for more formal pot combinations or annual color change-outs in the areas closest to the home. 

These are a Southern gardener's dream (zones 8-11!). Paperwhites are native to the western Mediterranean — Spain, Portugal, southern Italy, North Africa — places with mild wet winters and hot dry summers. Sound familiar? It's essentially the climate of the Deep South, the Gulf Coast, coastal California, and warmer parts of Texas. Plant them here and you're giving them exactly what they evolved for. Even better, they bloom in early winter, filling that quiet gap when almost nothing else in the perennial garden is doing anything at all.

The scent controversy: Here's a fun bit of science behind that famous fragrance: paperwhites contain a compound called indole — the same chemical found in jasmine and orange blossom (and, in higher concentrations, in decay). At low levels indole reads as sweet and floral; at higher levels it tips into something funky and animalic. This is why people are so polarized about paperwhite smell — some find it heavenly, others say it's not so great. Both reactions are chemically valid; your nose is detecting real compounds, just interpreting them differently.

Outdoors, though, the whole conversation changes. In open air, the heavier indole notes dissipate quickly and what's left is the sweet, floral side drifting on the breeze. No four walls to trap it, no overwhelming the dinner table. Just a beautiful surprise of fragrance as you walk past on a December morning — exactly the kind of unexpected gift a winter garden should offer.

These are true heirlooms — no fancy variety name, just an old-fashioned strain we've been growing at the farm for several years. The kind of paperwhite that, once planted, sticks around. 

They multiply. A single bulb develops into a substantial clump within 3-5 years, and those clumps keep expanding and blooming faithfully for decades. This is why you find them still going strong at homesites where the house disappeared generations ago.

Planting: You can wait, but why would you? Plant them now and let the ground protect them (plus, you won't forget about them). The bulbs are dormant, but planting them now gives them time to settle in before sending up blooms this coming winter.

Plant 2-3 times as deep as the bulb is tall, in well-drained soil with 6+ hours of winter sun. If you really want to wait until the fall, you can. Just keep them in a location out of direct sunlight where the air can flow around them. 

Animals: Nothing eats them. Like all narcissus, paperwhites are toxic to deer, squirrels, voles, rabbits, and gophers. Plant them and forget the critter worries — this is a big part of why heirloom clumps persist for a century or more.

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SKU: 80697812939

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KB
Whiting, US
★★★★★ 5
Be aware! Once they are on, do not walk! 😂
Flavor Name: XL silicone socks 2 pairs
I absolutely love these things. But the first time I put them on in the living room. The walk to my bedroom was VERY interesting 😂😂😂 I now know I need to put them on and hang out for a bit, or simply go to bed. They do exactly what I need them to do. Feet feel great afterwards! With the right lotion, only need to use one every couple of weeks.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2025
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Marti
Los Angeles, US
★★★★★ 5
Transformed my feet
Flavor Name: XL silicone socks 2 pairs
After trying several other brands that actually my size did not have the luxury feeling of these. T although x large they have the BEST feel and function. I put lotion on then slip them on and within a few minutes my dry cracked heals are soft. Really a nice product.
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Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2024
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Tina Taylor
Houston, US
★★★★★ 3
Ok
Ok
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Reviewed in the United States on March 6, 2026
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Betsy
Natrona Heights, US
★★★★★ 5
One of the best dog toys I’ve found
Color: Blue, Color: Blue
My Great Dane puppy- at 140lbs, loves this!! We had another one that was plastic and it worked ok but this is so much better! Interactive, soft to play with, battery last a long time & he does not get bored with it. Besides is plush lamb chops, best toy ever bought for him.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2026
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K. Brittain
Lake Worth, US
★★★★★ 5
Keeps my wild child busy!
Color: Orange
*UPDATE 1/10/26* Does my pup love it? Yes. 5 stars for that. His big thing is just holding it in his mouth though, and laying down with it. Then he will put it down, and as soon as it rolls away he gets up and grabs it again. He definitely requires attention from his humans when it’s turned on…kind of defeats the purpose of why I bought it! He’s a needy boy, that’s for sure, so it’s not the toy’s fault. Two improvements I’d love to see though, are 1) the ability to turn off that yappy bark. I think my dog is more excited about it moving and not so much the yapping. Not that it’s bad, but my boy doesn’t bark much so I’m used to a quieter household. And 2) when removing the base for powering off, there should be a sensor so it doesn’t keep spinning in the socket, occasionally slipping out and hitting the floor. I worry about it breaking due to this. This thing arrived today and we couldn’t wait till Christmas to give it to our high play drive Australian Shepherd. It’s been barely above zero for weeks with no end in sight, and I have cold weather asthma so I really try to limit my exposure to the elements. Needless to say, my dog has been B O R E D. He truly craves interactive play with his humans, but last week I bought a cheap r/c cat toy that really caught his attention. So I splurged on this toy and so far, it’s AWESOME. He can’t control himself when the rope starts spinning. He pounces on it and it goes spinning off and around. He keeps picking it up thinking it’ll stop, but it keeps going. After 5 minutes of play he was acting completely gassed, but he just can’t resist it, as he put it down to get a drink of water and it started spinning again. Forget the water, I need that toy! As long as this thing can handle the teeth, slobber, dirt and grime, I’ll be a repeat customer!
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Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2025

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