Take your pick of the daffodils
Now’s the time to plant narcissus bulbs, but what varieties will you choose?
Here we are barely three months since we saw the last of the daffodils (‘ Pheasant’s Eye’) and I’m already planning for next year. I might not be able to get my ‘fix’ from actually seeing the flowers but I can get part way there by looking at pictures and dreaming about next spring.
Choosing varieties is very subjective I find. Having spent 30 years showing daffodils I’m not thrown by gardeners who insist that anything other than yellow is not a daffodil, but at the same time not at all surprised by those that are blown away when they see the range available. Whatever your preference, remember that you can have daffodils for five months of the year. To start the season I have to have ‘Spring
Dawn’. This white and yellow flower is only 25cm (10in) tall and often flowers with me before Christmas. Not quite so early as the ubiquitous ‘Tête-à-tête’. This perky little dwarf yellow is so versatile it’s impossible to ignore and will be in my tubs, under planted in the rose border and at the front of the open borders.
Anybody who has been to RHS Wisley or Rosemoor in the spring can’t fail to have been stunned by the naturalised colonies of Narcissus
cyclamineus. I struggle to grow this species in my garden but there are cyclamineus types that will thrive. Two new varieties that are my current favourites are
‘Rapture’ and ‘Warbler’. Both are all yellow with wind-tunnel swept back petals. ‘Rapture’ is slightly earlier than ‘Warbler’, but both are about 15cm (6in) tall and equally at home in containers or the border. One of my favourites for early colour is ‘Malvern City’. The strong stems make it a good garden variety and the large heads means that it can be seen clearly. Also flowering relatively early is ‘Sealing Wax’ (voted Daffodil of the Year by the industry), a flower of rich gold with a deep orange-red cup. Coming just after this would be the newcomer ‘Snowboard’, an all white flower that I first saw a few years ago and knew I had to have. Another newcomer that’s midseason flowering is ‘Turncoat’. This is another cyclamineus type with reflexed petals, but this time with cream/white petals and an orange centre. Mid-season is also the time for the reverse bi-colours, those flowers that start off lime-yellow but the cup turns to white as it matures. ‘Altun Ha’ would be my choice. The next stage in the flowering season is covered by ‘Vernal Prince’, with white petals with a deep lemon cup and a dark green eye. If you have difficult conditions one of the most forgiving varieties at this time of year is ‘Thalia’. This multi-headed variety has several blooms to a stem and is strongly fragrant. The end of the season brings ‘Sun
Disc’, a dainty little flower that only grows to 20cm (8in) and has a perfect circle of petals with a flat eye. Contrast this with ‘Prom Dance’, with a white and cream split corona with two or three heads to a stem. It’s quite unusual.
Finally, of course, I have to finish where I started with ‘Pheasant’s Eye’.