HOW TO PROPAGATE BULBS

Bulbs are a little more tricky to divide than lilies. Daffodils are the easiest, as they have a basal plate at the bottom of the bulb, while tulips have a smaller basal plate and can fall apart quite easily. when dividing bulbs, be very careful to keep everything sterile, as more of the bulb is exposed during this division process.

Take a little fat bulb and peel off the outer skin (like an onion).

Cut off the bottom basal plate and the very top neck.

Cut the bulb into eighths (cut into half, into quarters, then cut the quarters again). depending on the maturity of the bulb, you may see the embryo flower forming; this should be gently removed.

Ensure a small piece of basal plate is attached to each chip. then, very carefully, open up the chip (like a fan) keeping everything intact.

Place the chips into a mild bleach solution (10ml bleach to 1 litre water) for five minutes.

Remove them from the bleach, dry off with a paper towel and place into the flowers of sulphur.

Remove and pop in a bag of dry vermiculite. if you were to add water to the vermiculite it would rot the chips, due to the exposed cuts. the dry vermiculite will remove the moisture and help to seal the aforementioned cuts.

Place your bag of vermiculite and chips in a dark, warm place, such as a hot water cylinder cupboard.

A week later, add a small amount of water – half a tablespoon. Seal the bag back up and return it to its warm, dark home. over time, the chips will form little bulblets in between the scales.

Come spring, you can pot up the bulblets and should have flowering daffodils a couple of years later.