Flower Gardens

» linseyann1 - Free Bulbs to Plant

In response to Free Bulbs to Plant posted by Cottage_Garden:

any idea who would give free bulbs in colorado? i cant find Daffodils anywhere and i would love to have a Daffodil garden!!!

-- posted by linseyann1

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» Cottage_Garden - Free Bulbs to Plant

In response to Free Bulbs to Plant posted by linseyann1:

Nooooooooo, sorry, I don't know anywhere to get free bulbs in Colorado. It is probably a bit late to be looking for them in June, but you could ask around at your county extension, garden club, parks, and so on and see if anyone knows of a place that usually does this. Then be ready next year!

But, daffodil bulbs are usually sold in the fall for fall planting. Keep your eyes open for sales! Or, you might look into early ordering from the bulb catalogs. They often have good prices (especially if you want a lot) and some offer an early-order discount.

Good luck growing daffodils!

-- posted by Cottage_Garden

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» beachluvr - Caring for Transplanted Daffodils - Summertime in the South

My daffodils have been yellow for 2 months and I am ready to move one clump. When I transplant, do I treat them as a new planting -- watering every day for a week and then keeping damp? OR less watering? If there is a chance I will kill them, I will not move them. I am in the South - hot and dry. Help, please.

-- posted by beachluvr

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» Cottage_Garden - Caring for Transplanted Daffodils - Summertime in the South

In response to Caring for Transplanted Daffodils - Summertime in the South posted by beachluvr:
They do not need watering the way a new plant would -- they are not going to take any up because they are dormant or going dormant and too much water could cause them to rot....
You do not have to replant these right away. Once the foliage has withered completely you could dig them up, shake off the soil and separate them, and store in a paper bag or cardboard box or on an open shelf in a dark place and then plant in the fall when bulbs are normally planted....

-- posted by Cottage_Garden

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» nreller - daffodils with no buds

I have several clumps of daffodils that do not have buds on them. They are surrounded by other clumps that are about to bloom. They are not overcrowded. What is wrong with the ones without buds and is there something I should do? Fertilize? Now? Later? Thanks!

-- posted by nreller

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» ann56 - tranplanting stray daffodils

Hi,
I read your article on transplanting daffodils, but I think I need Daffodils for Dummies. I live in the house where I grew up. We have ample land. Through the years, landscaping has been done and unfortunately dirt has been removed that contained the daffodils that once lined a long area of our property. Fortunately, the daffodils have bloomed but in areas that are scattered throughout the property. I once tried to transplant them, but had no success. Please tell me what I can successly do to transplant them so they can decorate my property again. I did dig them in the fall and transplanted them the first time, but no success.

-- posted by ann56

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» Cottage_Garden - daffodils with no buds

In response to daffodils with no buds posted by nreller:

Hi! I dunno. Could be a bunch of different reasons. If these are newly planted last fall, they might have been undersized bulbs and will need a little time to bulk up and bloom.

Some varieties are longer lived and naturalize better than others; some just fade away.

Some varieties are just fussier than others about their growing conditions. If they don't seem crowded and are in a good sunny spot you could try fertilizing now and again in the fall in case that helps.

If they have been in place for a long time they might be crowded and need to be lifted and replanted.

Some bloom much later than others, are you certain there are no buds?

-- posted by Cottage_Garden

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» Cottage_Garden - tranplanting stray daffodils

In response to tranplanting stray daffodils posted by ann56:

Not sure why you are having trouble. Since these have been growing on your property for years you know they are well adapted to your location... hmmm.

Fall is the usual time for planting bare bulbs. BUT fall is not the usual time for digging them up! Normally they would be dug in early summer and stored over the summer for fall planting later.

If you move them in the fall they should still be dormant, meaning not actively growing, when you do it. This means you have to do it BEFORE they start growing their roots. If you move them while they are growing their roots then they will be very stressed. If they had roots when you moved them, that might explain what happened.

Daffodils should be planted in a spot with good drainage. This means a place where water does NOT collect after a rain -- not in a low spot, not at the bottom of a hill, not in heavy clay .... A slight rise or slope is ideal. If you have sandy soil this is probably not going to be an issue.

If you planted them in a place that is not well drained or where water collects, then they may have been too wet and they woudl have rotted as a result.

Here are fall planting tips when you are planting bare bulbs. Pick a good planting location -- full sun all day or at least half the day, well drained soil.

The bulbs should go in pointy end up. (Grin.)

The bulbs should be planted pretty deep, say about six inches or so. Loosen the soil below the bulb to encourage the roots to grow down into it. (The roots come out of the bottom end of the bulb.) Very shallow planting can cause them to fail due to freezing in winter -- depending on where you are, this would be potentially an explanation.

After planting the soil should be firmed down over the bulbs and if it doesn't rain in a few days, they need to be watered to settle the soil and eliminate any air pockets around them. Sometimes poor planting technique can contribute to failure.

You can move them in late spring/early summer as well, either while they are actively growing (not a great time) or as they go dormant (much better time).

It is possible to move daffodils is in the spring but only if you are careful about it. Some people like to do this because they can find the bulbs very easily.

You can dig them up while they are actively growing and replant immediately -- if you do this you must dig them up very carefully with a shovelful of soil around the bulbs. Move it carefully so the big shovelfull soil stays intact. Replant right away at the same depth as it grew before. If you are "good" at this the bulb will not know it was moved. This method is ok for a single bulb or very small clump. NOTE: This "in the green" move does NOT work well for old overgrown clumps -- they tend to separate when you dig and you can't really divide them all that successfully "in the green"-- it is just too disruptive to their roots.

Or, less finicky and ok (but not ideal) for daffodils that need to be divided, wait until the foliage has mostly turned brown and pretty much died back. Dig the bulb up, shake off the soil and replant in the new location right away. Plant at least as deep as it grew before, a little deeper. Firm the soil well around the bulb. Water once to settle air pockets, but after that do not worry about watering it. NOTE: This method works okay if they are crowded and need dividing. It also avoids the problem of trying to store them all summer before replanting in the fall.

The USUALLY RECOMMENDED method is to wait until the foliage is all dried up in early summer. Dig up the now dormant bulbs, shake off all the dirt. Air dry in a single layer in a shady place. Store in a dark airy place at room temperature for the summer. Keep them in a single layer and not touching on a shelf or in a paper bag (paper, NOT plastic). Check from time to time and discard any that show signs of rotting. Replant in fall at the normal bulb planting time -- meaning mid to late fall when nights have been colder and the soil has cooled down. (See bare bulb fall planting directions above.)

In all cases, avoid cutting into or otherwise damaging the bulbs.

I hope this helps!

-- posted by Cottage_Garden

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» ann56 - tranplanting stray daffodils

In response to tranplanting stray daffodils posted by Cottage_Garden:

thank you for all the info. I have to clear some things, though. Right now they are in bloom and are beautiful, just not where I would like them to be. *added note, many are in bloom, but some are bushy,full green shoots not buds or flowers. These are beside ones that are in full bloom* when you speak of the folliage drying before digging up in late summer, are you speaking of the flower folliage or the entire plant. As I recall from previous seasons, the green bushy part of the daffodil was green the entire summer.
I am sure when the daffodils were mistakenly moved b/c of landscaping reasons, it had to be mid summer since that would have been the time our family did that work. Thanks for all your input--maybe it would be helpful if I told you I live in southwestern Pennsylvania.

-- posted by ann56

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds

» Cottage_Garden - tranplanting stray daffodils

In response to tranplanting stray daffodils posted by ann56:
Daffodils send up foliage (leaves) and also individual flower stems with the blooms on top. The flower itself fades pretty quickly. You can snap or cut off the flower once it fades, but leave all the leaves in place until they dry up.
After the flower dries up, the leaves continue to grow for quite some time. Eventually, though, usually some time in June, the leaves turn brown and dry up and shrivel away as the bulb goes dormant for the summer. (This process is how the bulb refuels so it can bloom again the next spring.) In the fall, the bulb will send down new roots. The following spring, it will send up flowers and leaves again. The leaves refuel the bulb so it can bloom the next year, and so on.
In PA, I would expect the foliage to turn yellow and dry out sometime towards the end of June... that's a good time to dig them up.
Now, there are different kinds of daffodils. Some have foliage that is thinner and some have foliage that is wider, but they all have a sort of "grassy" style of foliage. If you are getting thick clumps of foliage, it might mean the bulbs need to be divided and replanted.
The bulbs propagate themselves underground by dividing. With age, one bulb will split itself into a couple of bulbs. This means that over the years what started as a single bulb eventually forms a cluster of many bulbs close together. When they get too crowded, they will not bloom any more. All you will see at that point is lots of nice looking foliage and no flowers.... but the foliage should die back.
If you are seeing green foliage all summer long maybe you have a mix of plants, perhaps daylilies?
Daylily (Hemerocallis) foliage can be a bit similar in appearance to daffodil foliage as it is also grassy looking. Daylilies are often planted as companions to daffodils. The reason for planting them together is that the daylilies start to grow their foliage after the daffodils have bloomed, and hte daylily foliage covers up the dying daffodil leaves.
And, in PA, the orange flowered tawny daylilies (Hemerocallis fulva) have been very popular over the years. They would also survive being uprooted and moved -- very tough survivor type plants. And they grow in thickening clumps. (IF it is actually the old fashioned tawny one, that daylily actually runs and spreads, especially in good soil.) So I wonder if maybe that is what is happening for you.
You could dig one up and see -- daylilies have tough wiry orange colored roots, daffodils have bulbs underground.

-- posted by Cottage_Garden

Permalink Print Discussion Email Discussion How to subscribe to feeds