joene's garden » Bulbs

Don’t Forget the Daffodils

joenesgarden — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:21:52 +0000

It's easy to walk past spent blooms of early spring-blooming bulbs like daffodils when so much else is blooming in the May garden. But don't forget the daffodils. If you haven't yet marked the locations of daffodils and other early-spring blooming bulbs, do so now.

As May progresses, bulbs that were once in full bloom now look more like this.

Spent daffodil blossoms do nothing for the attractiveness of a garden. To tidy up this scene simply snap off the heads … just the heads … of the spent blossoms. Leave the stem and leaf foliage to continue to photosynthesize as this is the process that produces energy for the bulb for next spring.

Leave the foliage in its natural state as long as you can stand it. When it gets really floppy use a tie-together method to maintain a neater appearance. Loosely wrap two outer leaves around the remaining gathered-together leaves and give the two outer leaves a quick, but loose tie … just like the first step in tying shoelaces. This allows the foliage to keep collecting and storing energy until the foliage browns. It's not advisable to gather, fold over, and rubber band daffodil foliage as this prevents the leaf surface of most of the foliage from photosynthesizing and sending energy into the bulb.

To maintain annual blooming, it's very important to allow bulb foliage to brown naturally. You can remove the foliage once it is completely brown but, before doing so it's a good idea to mark the exact location of your bulb plantings. My favorite method of doing so – with barrel rings - uses repurposed material and adds a rustic flair to garden beds. Barrel rings are sturdy enough to withstand a wayward footstep and heavy enough to not blow away. Their diameter is about the size of the mature plantings of daffodils in my garden beds.

I remove the barrel rings from decayed half-barrels previously used for container plantings. Rusty metal wreath frames are alternative found round objects that can be similarly repurposed as permanent bulb markers.

By marking bulbs now, you prevent accidently digging them up during later planting. Plus, the markers are a continuous reminder that this space is not totally empty.

Bulb suppliers often discount bulb orders made prior to July 1, so now is a good time to plan the bulbs you need to fill in gaps. If you don't manage to get to bulb orders until autumn, the markers are ideal reminders of where you already have bulbs planted and where more are needed.

Barrel rings work well for larger clumps of bulbs but I'm still searching for a smaller type of repurposed ring to mark crocus and smaller bunches of spring-blooming bulbs. Any suggestions?

Categories: Bulbs, Gardening, Techniques.
Tags: daffodils, gardening in Connecticut, marking spring-blooming bulbs.

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joene's garden

Daffodil blooms like facing the sun

joenesgarden — Wed, 01 May 2013 06:00:00 +0000

Daffodil blooms like facing the sun

Every spring the daffodils I first planted on this property open their first, much awaited, sunny-yellow blossoms facing the sun. This would not be an issue except that my from-the-inside view also faces the sun, and that makes this a gardening oops – GOOPs for short.

Welcome to the first of the month, the day I share one of the many gardening miss-steps I've made or witnessed in my almost 40 years of gardening. This month's GOOPs actually happens every spring in my gardens. Way back, when I planted the very first batches of daffodil bulbs on this property, I had a vision of looking out of my office window each spring to be greeted by bunches of bright yellow daffodils.

I didn't consider the orientation of the sun at the time. Nor did I consider that daffodil flowers tend to face the sun which, in my chosen planting site would mean they would turn their backs on me.

Here's the situation …

And here is my view in real life. The blossoms always open facing away from my office vantage point.

Ignore the rest of the mess in this bed. When I grabbed this photo I had not yet cut back the grasses or cleaned up the winter-blown leaves. Just look at those first opening blossoms. They are all facing east and south.

Since these first bulbs went into the ground 15 years ago, I've planted many more in beds on either side of the front yard, in front and behind the house, and along the driveway. They bloom in progression from April into May. Not all of them open with their blossoms facing the sun. Many open facing all directions.

But the first groups of daffodils I planted so many years ago do the same thing every spring.

Those on the left face east. Those toward the back face south. Those on the right face southwest. Only a few blossoms face north or northeast, the direction of my from-the-inside view.

To be able to enjoy the unique aspects of each blossom I have to walk outside – not a bad thing – or pick the flowers for an indoor bouquet – not a bad thing either.

Any guesses as to which blossoms get picked first?

Yep, those turning their back on me. One way or another these daffodils are going to show me their faces. If not in their outside display, then they'll show off in a vase in plain view from my office.

Head to this American Daffodil Society explanation about daffodils and similar bulbs, and how best to plant them … it's quite informative.

Do you have a GOOPs to share? You can divulge your tale of woe or humor in a comment below, or write a GOOPs post on your own blog. Just leave a teaser comment below so readers will visit your post.

Don't be shy … anyone can join. After all, if you're not making mistakes in the garden you are not gardening hard enough.

Categories: Bulbs, Gardening, GOOPs-Gardening Oops.
Tags: daffodils, gardening in Connecticut, gardening oops - GOOPs.

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Daffodils do not play well with other cut flowers

joenesgarden — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:13:57 +0000

Daffodils do not play well with other cut flowers

This is a repost from March 26, 2012. In Connecticut, bloom timing for daffodils is one month later in 2013 compared with 2012, but the information about daffodil sap remains relevant from year to year.

I love filling my living spaces with vases of fresh-cut daffodils. They cheer up the darkest mood and warm the chilliest room. But I learned that cut daffodils (narcissus is their botanical name) do not play well with other cut flowers in the same vase.

Cut daffodil stems exude a sap containing calcium oxalate crystals. These crystals prevent other flowers in the same vase from absorbing water, causing them to wilt. The same crystals can also irritate human skin leading to 'daffodil itch ' a contact dermatitis common among people who pick or work with the cheery spring bloomers.

I use two methods for picking daffodils. I either slice or snap the flower stalks near their base, then hold stems bloom-end downward to keep the sap in the hollow stem. This works well when picking just a few daffs at a time. To gather a bunch of daffodil blossoms, I carry a small clean bucket or other non-breakable water-holding container to the garden. After cutting, each stem quickly goes into the clean water-filled bucket. Using this method, the flowers can rest in the water until I have time to arrange them in a vase of fresh water.

To keep these or any cut flowers fresh longer, replace day old water with fresh.

While daffodils are lovely when bunched alone in a vase, I like to add a touch of contrast. So rather than sentence another type of bloom to early death, I snip a few woody branches to accompany my daffodil bouquet. I love the contrast of the warm daffodil petals with the dark, but dainty, structure of birch or beech branches, such as in these photos from previous years.

Bouquets like these will cheer up even the gloomiest Gus.

Categories: Bulbs, Focus on Flowers, Seasons.
Tags: cut daffodils, cut flowers, gardening in Connecticut.

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