Daffodil Care © 2006

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Daffodils are amongst the easiest plants to care for in the garden. It is best to plant them in the fall when the soil temperature has cooled below seventy degrees. Plant them about one and a half times their depth. Work into the soil some compost, well rotted manure or some other organic matter. The bed may be lightly mulched with shredded leaves when planted. Do not mulch too heavily, as the bulbs will not survive it the soil stays too wet. If you are planting in a heavy clay or a very wet area, you may want to dig a bigger hole and put a layer of sand under the bulb to ensure drainage. This is not necessary for most plantings, just in wet, heavy soil.

The following spring daffodils will emerge and bloom with no further care. The leaf tips may begin to emerge very early, when it is still pretty cold. Don't worry, these plants can take the cold, as long as it doesn't get too extreme. Or if a layer of snow covers them, as this will protect the plants from very cold temperatures. When the buds emerge in in early spring, don't worry about light frosts, as the plants can withstand these as long as the buds are still tight. If extreme cold hits and you want to cover them, use a light blanket, spun bond fabric, or sheet. Do not use plastic as this will do more harm than good.

Care after the bloom is finished is easy. If you wish to dead head them, you may to remove the unsightly seed heads which form. But do not remove the leaves. The daffodil bulb needs the food these leaves will manufacture to survive the winter. You may plant perennial flowers or annuals among them to hide them. The leaves will wither and dissapppear around mid summer.

After three or four years, you may divide the bulbs to invigorate the bed. Mark the ones you wish to dig in the spring when they are blooming. Then, when the foliage has died down you can carefully dig around the bulbs and lift them. Shake the dirt away and seperate the bulbs. Each bulb may be planted immediately or stored for fall planting. Care of the bulb while drying includes allowing them to dry in a cool, dry spot, then placing them in a mesh bag until fall when they may be planted.

Care of established daffodil beds may be as simple as just enjoying the perennial flower display, or if you wish bigger flowers you can topdress the bed after bloom with compost or rotted manure. Or use a commercial fertilizer. This is not usually necessary, but it will result in more and bigger blooms.

Daffodils are amongst the easies flowers in the perennial flower bed to care for and will return reliably year after year with little care.

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