The hot topic on gardening blogs these days is the lack of respect that daffodils get. These posts claim that gardeners dismiss the cheerful spring beauties: so dependable, they are undervalued; so adaptable, anyone can grow them.
Spring Daffodils
Nothing special, some say—but I am not sure that the basic premise is accurate.
Everyone I know looks forward to the masses of blossoms that just sing, “Spring!” They are planted in gardens all through my neighborhood. Every year, one neighbor’s yard glows with masses of yellow daffodils interspersed with cheery blue chionodoxa.
Special daffodil days are held in public and private gardens and in towns from Massachusetts to Maryland—or they were before COVID-19. As the website for the famous Nantucket Daffodil Festive says, “The pandemic has closed the festival for this year, but it can’t stop the daffodils from blooming.” (They have virtual events planned.)
Daffodils on display in a public garden in Massachusetts
There are many hundreds of kinds of daffodils, so gardeners can specialize in rare types or specific varieties. Or they can focus on planting different kinds to bloom in succession and have daffodil blossoms from early spring into early summer.
Late blooming bi-colors in May
I have daffodils planted all around our property.
Mount Hood daffodils in the White garden
A few that faithfully show up year after year were not planted by me – and I don’t know who did plant them. They look like they may be the all-yellow/double Campernelle, which goes back at least to 1850. They pop up in the lawn, here and there, and against the wall of the house. They may have been planted by a long-ago owner of this house, or by a bird. I am always happy to see them show up again each year. Daffodils have a reputation for being long-lived, but still, I am reassured when I see these antiques returning.
Count me, Jo Busha, among those who revere daffodils.
Book Note: Time and the Garden by Jo Busha is a collection of essays written over a ten-year period about gardening, life in Vermont, and observations of the natural world by author, Jo Busha. It is arranged by season, but not all the essays have a specific seasonal connection. It will appeal to gardeners, readers seeking a strong sense of place, and people interested in rural living, even if they aren’t able to live it. This place, where Busha has lived for 45 years, has played a huge role in her life. While not a how-to book, gardeners may find the essays instructive. Booklovers are likely to feel this a cozy read, warmth for a snowy day.
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