Monday, March 16, 2009

March Plant of the Month - Daffodil

Along with the robin,

Nothing says “Spring is Here” quite like the Narcissus or daffodil!

yellowpurple

As a garden designer, one of my foremost goals is to create a garden where plants bloom 12 months out of the year. I am also very fond of garden dynamics. This occurs when the look and feel of a garden changes from season to season. In order to achieve this effect, one must use plants that ebb and flow through different seasons of the year. Obviously, a knowledge of plant bloom times in your area is a must.

Also, the use of flowering bulbs can help you achieve this effect. Every garden design I create includes flower bulbs and they always include daffodils! These bulbs are among the toughest and most reliable plants I know.

There is nothing more beautiful to me, than to see naturalized daffodils in Spring.

There are all sorts of wonderful varieties out there. Some of my favorite sources for daffodils are Dutch Gardens and White Flower Farm.

Photo by kaycatt

When I plant daffodils in the residential landscape, I always put them in a bed of liriope such as this.

Photo by snjdavis

Or this …

Bohlin Cywinski Jackson

Imagine that beautiful bed of liriope transformed each Spring by the color yellow. It could be sensational!

In this way, the daffodils come up each Spring and completely change the appearance of the bed without compromising the integrity of the design. The foliage of the daffodils and the liriope is similar in size, shape, color and form. Year round, you have a lovely evergreen bed of liriope until the Spring when suddenly, the yellow daffodils transform it into a mass of yellow. Stunning!

Photo by Garry Platt

Another good reason for daffodils is the fact that deer won’t touch them. They are tried and true deer-resistant plants and require little to no maintenance. Now, that’s my kind of plant!

Daffodils should be planted in the garden in Fall. They should be planted in full sun to part shade in well drained soil. The soil should be amended with compost or another organic material and bone meal at the time of planting. Watch this P. Allen Smith Video to learn more about how to plant daffodils.

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To learn more about daffodils in general, visit the American Daffodil Society.

Photo by alicemariedesigns

Happy Spring!

9 comments:

  1. Daffs, are great. Not only are they beautiful, but the rabbits don't seem to like them, and we have many rabbits on our 10 acres.

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  2. What a beautiful post! Daffodils seem to be hardy and easy to grow..., could be the perfect flower for me to plant.

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  3. Come on over and see some of my daffodil links too--this was a lovely post, I'll put you on my Southern blog roll.

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  4. I remember my dad being very cross at me for mowing over them when I was a kid. I did finally learn. My mom and dad always called them Jonquils. Mostly he planted them among other stuff, like your liriope: yellow and blue.

    That mix brought back one my one of my earliest garden memories. I was very young, visiting gardens in the spring in and around Charleston. At Boone Hall we toured the house and exited beneath a huge arbor / pergola thing. It was covered with white wisteria and yellow roses. The look and the fragrance have stayed with me ever since.

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  5. Thanks for sharing all the wonderful daffodil pics and tips :-)

    Can't wait till the daffodils start blooming here!!

    Kelly @ DesignTies

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  6. I notice the crocus popping up here ( daffodils always follow soon after)...which always, for me, signals winter's end.- a friend in town said to me yesterday that spring comes once the Irish march ( referring to the St. Pat's parade ) let's hope he's right!

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  7. Now if I could grow a daffodil with purple foliage, like in your second photo, I'd be a much bigger fan of daffodils.

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  8. I love daffodils cause they are yellow! I was fascinated by the white one, I don't know if I've ever seen a pure white daffodil!

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