Radebaugh Greenhouses

Daffodils

When the daffodils bloom in Baltimore everyone gets excited. These gorgeous blooms provide the first signs that Spring is just around the corner. Daffodils can be found in many southern states. Their gorgeous yellow blooms and deep green stems make for an incredibly beautiful display. Daffodils are a favorite of many folks around the United States. The daffodil is considered to be a perennial flower. Meaning, these flowers sprout and bloom year after year. If you plant them in one of your flower beds, you going to be delighted. They multiple over the years. Small patches of daffodils usually become large patches of daffodils over the years. More to love!

The formal name for daffodils is “Narcissus Pseudonarcissus.” These perennial plants have pale to bright yellow petals. They have a central trumpet flower, directly in the middle of the bloom. These plants have long, dark green stems. Not every stem will produce a flower. The daffodil plant grows from a bulb, so most gardeners tend to plant enough bulbs to ensure full floral color throughout the daffodil beds. The flowers produce seeds, which often fall from the flower into your flower beds. It can take a number of years for these seeds to germinate. Assuming the seed find their way into some soft soil, you will normally see new daffodil plants with five to seven years of germination.

Radebaugh Florist uses daffodils in many of our Spring floral designs. Daffodils are a seasonal product. Locally grown daffodils are generally available between the months of March through late April. We actually grow some of the daffodils we sell right here in our very own greenhouses. When we need daffodils later in the year, we are generally able to purchase them from growers out on the west coast of the United States. Areas like California offer perfect year round growing conditions for many different floral varieties. Daffodils are also available from International growers as well.

 

 

 

 

 

Growing Recommendations – Daffodils

As mentioned earlier, daffodils are perennial flowers. They will come back year after year. If you are thinking of adding daffodils to your garden, we recommend you do so by initially planting them as bulbs. By using bulbs, you will generally see much stronger foliage and gorgeous vibrant yellow blooms, when they sprout for the first time. Daffodils like partial shade. They do nicely under trees, in areas that hold moisture well. Make sure that you plant them in an area of your flower bed that drains well. You will want to avoid allowing large amounts of standing water to pool around the bulbs. Daffodil bulbs are best planted in the Fall. We recommend getting them planted before it turns too cold and ground hardens. Prepare your ground by using a tiller, or a shovel. We suggest loosening the soil down to about 8 – 12 inches deep. Prepare your soil for the bulbs by blending in some nice peat moss, cow manure and good top soil. Daffodils respond well to soil that can hold moisture and allow for root growth. They spread faster in areas that have great soil. When the soil becomes too hard, growth and plant performance tends to suffer. They will generally sprout in March, when temperatures begin to warm. We recommend covering your daffodils with mulch in the Fall, after planting. That will ensure that they don’t sprout to soon. Daffodils that sprout and bloom to early in the Spring are at risk of a late freeze.  They perform well in full sun, but, also grow well even in flower beds that receive only partial sun.