A Cornell University horticulturist research says that giving some plants diluted alcohol stunts the growth of a plant's leaves and stems but doesn't affect the blossoms.

William Miller, director of Cornell's Flower Bulb Research Program, reported his findings in the April issue of HortTechnology, a peer-reviewed journal of horticulture.

Miller's study focused on paper white narcissus and other daffodils but he's also had promising results with tulips. He began his investigation last year after receiving a call from The New York Times about a reader who had written to the garden editor claiming that gin had prevented some paper white narcissi from growing too tall and floppy and asked if it was because of some "essential oil" in the gin.

Intrigued that diluted alcohol might act as a growth retardant, Miller began conducting experiments with ethanol. Because hard liquor is easier for consumers to obtain, he switched to alcohol and began trying different kinds, including dry gin, unflavored vodka, whiskey, white rum, gold tequila, mint schnapps, red and white wine and pale lager beer, on paper whites.

The beer and wine did not work, likely because of their sugar content.

"While solutions greater than 10 percent alcohol were toxic, solutions between 4 and 6 percent alcohol stunted the paper whites effectively," said Miller. "When the liquor is properly used, the paper whites we tested were stunted by 30 to 50 percent, but their flowers were as large, fragrant and long-lasting as usual."

Any economic benefits, at least directly, are slight, he said. Commercial horticulturists already have other growth-control methods for large-scale production. But for home gardeners, the gain is in terms of product quality.