You’re probably too late for Christmas blooms, but if you get a pot of paperwhites going now you should have blooms for much of January — and maybe into February.

A handful or two of these no-fuss bulbs also makes an easy, last-minute gift idea. You can usually find them at nurseries, florists and home centers for between $1 and $1.50 a bulb.

Paperwhites, which belong to the tazetta division of the genus Narcissus, don’t need a cooling period in order to bloom and they don’t need soil.

I find it easiest to put them in a shallow container filled with about an inch or so of small pebbles from the driveway. Nestle the bottoms of the bulbs into the rocks and fill the pot with water just up to the base of the bulbs.

First the bulbs will set down roots in the water and then you should have blooms within three weeks. You can also buy special vases that allow the bulbs to barely sit in water as they grow.

Start the bulbs in a bright window, then move them into indirect light when they begin to bloom so that they’ll last longer.

A cool room that stays in the low 60s is best. The cooler the room, the less likely they are to want to flop over when they come into flower.

You can also stunt their growth a bit and keep them from flopping over by giving them a stiff shot of booze. Really — it works. When the green shoots are about 5 inches high, drain the water from the pot and replace it with a mix of one part vodka or gin to eight parts water.

The snow-white cultivar ‘Ziza’ is among the most popular varieties, but its strong musky scent bothers some people. Other good cultivars include ‘Jerusalem,’ ‘Galilee,’ ‘Israel,’ the yellow-petaled ‘Nazareth’ and the golden ‘Bethlehem.’

Paperwhites are one-time bloomers, so just toss them onto the compost pile when the blooms begin to fade.