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Planting Daffodil Bulbs

spring flowering bulbs planting daffodil bulbsOne of the cheapest and easiest bulbs a gardener could grow would be the common daffodil (Narcissus). In fact, planting daffodil bulbs and successfully seeing them flower is an achievable goal for even the most novice gardener.

The beauty of any spring flowering bulb is the fact that you stick it in the ground and see nothing for a couple of months until finally a few strands of foliage spear their way through the soil. They continue heavenward and after reaching some invisible ceiling they begin to send a flower out, as a submarine would raise a telescope. Then almost instantly, your drab garden bed is clothed in raiment of colour that takes your breath away and inspires the neighbours to do something about their garden.

Planting daffodil bulbs is as inspiring as that - and more. Last year we naturalised a bunch of daffodil bulbs beneath our deciduous silver birch and were so impressed with how they meshed with the dichondra. The flowers seemed to last for ages and they were so cheery that they motivated us to get into action with the spring planting.

planting daffodil bulbs daffodil picture

This was a picture of the first ones to flower last spring.

There are more than 25 species and over 13,000 hybridisations of the daffodil bulb not including jonquils (which are incorrectly termed as daffodil bulbs).

While planting daffodil bulbs is not an onerous task a gardener can still come unstuck and fail to see any reward for their effort. There are numerous reasons why daffodil bulbs don't flower and the American Daffodil Society has come up with a great list of reasons for this. These range from planting daffodil bulbs too deep or too shallow, to leaving them too long in the same position.

How to plant Daffodil Bulbs

Daffodil bulbs don't just have to be planted in the ground. They work exceptionally well in pots and containers also and may even be easier to care for when planted in pots. The benefit of growing them in containers is that they're easy to identify where they're positioned unlike in a garden setting.

We chose to naturalise ours under a bed of dichondra amongst some silver birch trees because we knew they wouldn't obstruct any other gardening ventures in that position. Many gardeners have noted that they inadvertently dig their daffodil bulbs up mistakenly thinking it was a free space for another plant.

If you decide to plant daffodil bulbs in the soil ensure that you have some way of identifying the position later down the track. Prepare the soil well by aerating it with a garden fork and working in some composted material and an organic fertiliser such as manure or blood and bone.

Using a small garden shovel or bulb planter to dig a hole 2 times the height of the daffodil bulb. You should be able to place another daffodil bulb on top of the one your planting as a guide for knowing how far to dig the hole. Cover the hole with the remaining soil and pat down. Water in well.

Fertilising daffodil bulbs

There are only two times that you should need to fertilise your daffodil bulbs. Once when you're planting them, or if they're still in the ground then fertilise at the start of autumn, and once when the flowers have died off and the foliage is beginning to brown. Some gardeners also fertilise just before flowering but this really isn't necessary.

The first application of fertiliser is for the development of the foliage while the second, as the foliage dies down, is for the development of next year's flower.





Posted by Stuart on May 17, 2006 7:26 AM | | Check to Subscribe to this Comment:


Comments

I love my daffodils in the spring for the wonderful waves of colour, but don't like digging them in late summer or fall to thin out. That's a hard job. I get a few groups done each year and have plenty to give away or plant somewhere else.
Looking forward to reading what you have to say about other bulbs too Stuart.

Posted by: kerri | May 20, 2006 4:28 AM

Can you offer any suggestions for transplanting daffodils? We have had the most beautiful daffodils in our front garden for many, many years. They were moved around and come back increasing in number. We are going to have a brick wall built around our garden and want to remove the daffodils because we have to increase the depth of the flower beds, also because we don't want the workmen to damage them. We would like to know the best way to preserve them before we can re-plant them. Thank you, Lorraine

Posted by: Lorraine Beatty | June 7, 2006 2:42 AM

Lorraine - I would recommend you read my "Transplanting Tulip Bulbs" post. It's basically the same information for many types of bulbs.

I'm guessing you're a US resident and if I'm right you're suffering your way through spring (pun!!). This is not the best time to start transplanting as you will need to wait until summer or autumn (fall).

Once you've dug them up the soil can be washed off and then they can be stored in a dry place until you're ready to transplant them.

Posted by: Stu | June 7, 2006 3:56 PM

I bought 50 bulbs by mailorder and the same week they arrived, we burst a water main and I totally forgot about them. Well, I just found them and I don't know what to do with them. They have stayed cold and wintered well on our back porch. Is there any way to enjoy them this year or do I just wait until fall and plant them and hope for the spring?

Posted by: Mama | March 5, 2008 5:41 AM

Hello, I have some daffodils in pots that are wilting now, what do I do - are the bulbs done for the year? Thank you, Lori

Posted by: lori cohen | April 4, 2008 2:23 AM

Do you have any suggestions for what I might be able to do with daffodils that do not bloom? We've been in our house in Southwestern PA for 8 years now and our daffodils haven't bloomed these last 2 years. We've tried replanting them in different areas but all we get is the green stalk...no pretty flowers :(

Posted by: mamaof3now | April 14, 2008 10:29 PM

my problem is the same as lori cohn. My daffodils are basically lovely long leaves, with one or two flowers in a faily large area:( also.

Posted by: Laaurie | April 24, 2008 6:39 AM

My problem is the same as Lori Cohn's plight. No blooms, green leaves and tht's it. :(

Posted by: Laurie | April 24, 2008 6:44 AM

This must be the place to grow beautiful daffodil leaves with no blooms, not even a head to the promise of a bloom.
I just dug up (gasp) all my bulbs that didn't have blooms & are sitting in the garage until I can put them back in the ground with more room around them, I think mine got too crowded and didn't couldn't bloom.
I would like to do that soon do that I don't chance hubby tossing the bulbs (I have lost other plants this way). Anyone just pull to replant this time of year?

Posted by: Annette | April 29, 2008 12:30 AM

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