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FOR MANY of us, daffodils are theflower of spring, the flower ofhope, the flower that says, “Yes,

winter is over.” They also belong to one ofthe few plant genera that gardeners in allregions of the United States can grow suc-cessfully. Mind you, that’s not to say thatall daffodils will grow in all regions, butthere are some daffodils that will grow inall regions; it’s just a matter of selecting theones that will thrive where you live. Daffodils (Narcissus spp.) are among

the easiest plants to grow, which makes

them a great choice for beginning gar-deners and for introducing children togardening. For more experienced gar-deners, this large, diverse genus offersplenty of opportunities to explore waysto use them creatively in garden design orto experiment with breeding their ownunique selections.Another great reason to grow daf-

fodils: Deer don’t eat them. Neither dosquirrels, moles, voles, rabbits, or anyother critters. And once planted, thebulbs can remain in the same location for

many years and will continue to increase,or perennialize.

DAFFODIL CLASSIFICATIONDaffodils have been separated into 13 di-visions based on flower form. The systemis too detailed to be outlined in this arti-cle, but for those who are interested, afull description of the classification sys-tem will be provided through a link tothis article on the AHS website(www.ahs.org).In general, the cyclamineus hybrids in

Division 6 and the trumpet daffodils inDivision 1 bloom early in the season.Short-cupped daffodils in Division 3 arelater-season bloomers, and poeticus hy-brids in Division 9 usually end the daf-fodil display.

MAKING CHOICESWith all the daffodils available—morethan 25,000 cultivar names have been reg-istered and hundreds are available eachyear in catalogs or at local stores—perhapsthe most difficult task a gardener faces isselecting which cultivars to grow.One way to ensure you choose excel-

lent daffodils is to select cultivars thathave won the American Daffodil Soci-ety’s John and Gertrude Wister Award(see sidebar, page 22), given for excellenceas a garden plant. Among the require-ments for award winners are that theyshould perform well in most regions ofthe country. They also must be vigorousplants that have attractive, long-lastingflowers. The flowers should be reason-ably sunfast so that colors don’t becomebleached out or the edges of the cups—or coronas—“burn” and become dry andcrisp. Thirty-three daffodils have re-ceived the award since it was established,the most recent being the 2011 winner‘Barrett Browning’, a white-and-orange,small-cupped daffodil.

Daffodilsregional proven performers

BY MARY LOU GRIPSHOVER

Few plants herald the arrival of spring like the cheerful blooms

of daffodils. Experts from the American Daffodil Society share

their recommendations for cultivars that will thrive in different

regions of North America.

Daffodils planted in masses make a spectacular showing, as in this woodland garden. For the best effect, choose a single cultivar.

With a focus on Wister award winners,backed up by advice from American Daf-fodil Society (ADS) members in variousregions, here are some recommendationsfor specific daffodil selections that areknown to flourish in different regions ofthe country.

PACIFIC NORTHWESTGardeners in the Pacific Northwest enjoythe perfect climate for daffodils and willbe successful with nearly all selections.An exception may be some of the tazettas(Division 8), which often send up foliagein the fall.Some of the best daffodils in this re-

gion have been bred by Elise and DickHavens, the owners of Mitsch Daffodils,a nursery in Hubbard, Oregon. Their‘Rapture’, with its beautifully swept-back

yellow petals, blooms early in the seasonand is the only daffodil to have won boththe Wister Award for garden perfor-mance and the ADS’s Pannill Award asan outstanding exhibition flower. ‘Stratosphere’ is a tall daffodil with yel-

low petals and a short orange cup and sev-eral blooms to the stem. In some climatesit looks more like an all yellow flower. Itblooms later in the season and was the firstto win the Wister Award, in 1985. ‘Accent’, a breakthrough flower in

1960 for white-and-pink daffodils, wonthe award in 1987, the second flower tobe so honored. This is a flower that openswith pink color, and—unlike with some

selections—you don’t have to use yourimagination to call it pink.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AND THE SOUTHIn warmer regions of the United States,such as southern California and someparts of the South, the tazettas steal theshow beginning in late December or Jan-uary. The tazettas offer the added bonusof fragrance, but it can be a bit over-whelming, and gardeners tend to eitherlove it or hate it.For those who live in warmer regions, I

suggest trying ‘Falconet’, which Phil Huey,a member of the Texas Daffodil Society,describes as fabulous. This yellow-and-red

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‘Barrett Browning’ is the 2011 winner of theAmerican Daffodil Society Wister Award.

The backward-facing petals of ‘Rapture’ giveit a unique windswept look.

‘Sweetness’ is a good choice for warmer regions, such as Southern California and the Deep South.

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selection is a cross between a tazetta and N.jonquilla and has three to five or more flo-rets per stem. Another good choice for thisregion is ‘Ice Follies’, which is one of themost widely-grown daffodils. It has an in-dustrial-strength constitution that makesit ideal for mass public plantings or largedrifts. It goes through an interesting colorchange, opening white and yellow, with

the cup becoming creamy white as theflower matures.‘Sweetness’ blooms early and has a fra-

grance to match its name. The smallishyellow flowers usually come just one to astem, but occasionally there are two. Yellow-and-orange ‘Tahiti’, which re-

ceived the Wister Award in 2003, is theonly double that re-blooms consistently in

Texas. Double daffodils, especially olderones, sometimes “blast,” or fail to openproperly, when weather conditions fluctu-ate. I haven’t seen any scientific research toexplain this, but it seems to happen whenthere’s a change either from nice coolweather to unusually warm, or vice versa.There’s a widespread perception that

daffodils won’t grow in Florida unless they

DAFFODIL GROWING GUIDELINESMany of the cultivars described in this article will not be avail-able at local nurseries, so you’ll need to rely on the mail-ordersources listed on page 23. Order your bulbs early—by the endof June at the latest. Early orders are shipped first, so there’sless chance of the grower being out of the bulbs you want.Avoid mixtures; a large group of the same cultivar will lookbetter and bloom simultaneously.In most areas, plant daffodils about twice as deep as the bulb

is tall—about five to six inches. The distance apart is really de-pendent on your garden plan. If you are naturalizing them, plantthem 12 inches or so apart; it may look sparse at first, but thebulbs will multiply and soon you’ll have a field of color. If youwant to create clumps of them in your garden beds, plant themfive or six inches apart.Daffodils thrive in sites where they receive at least a half

day of sun, but they can be grown under deciduous trees be-cause they progress through much of their active growth be-fore the trees fully leaf out. They’re not particular about soiltype—either loam or clay is fine as long as it drains freely;soggy soils can cause bulb rot. They grow best with access to

regular moisture during active growth, which is from early falluntil the foliage turns yellow the following spring.When planting new bulbs, mix a balanced fertilizer (6-10-10

or 10-10-10 is good) into the soil beneath the bulbs. On estab-lished plantings, broadcast fertilizer with a low-nitrogen contentin spring and fall. If you fertilize only once a year, do it in the fall,because that’s when the bulbs are making new root growth.To ensure daffodils bloom heartily from year to year, it’s im-

portant to leave the foliage intact after blooming because thisis when photosynthesis is most active, creating next year’sblooms. Resist the urge to cut the foliage to ground level, tie itup, or fold it over and put a rubber band around it; just leave itin place until it yellows naturally. Camouflage it with annuals—marigolds are good—or other perennials such as daylilies.If the number of blooms drops off after a few years, the

bulbs are telling you they’re crowded and need to be dug up,divided, and replanted (you can also share a few with friendsor neighbors). Given space and a year or two to grow back toblooming size, they’ll again repay you with beautiful blooms.

—M.L.G.

‘Falconet’, left, and double-flowered ‘Tahiti’, right, have both proven to be successful selections in warm regions such as Texas.

are forced, but that’s not the case. The lateJohn Van Beck, who lived in the Tallahas-see area, discovered that with the properselection of cultivars, it’s possible to havefive months of daffodil bloom in Floridaand South Georgia. His wife, Linda, con-tinues to grow daffodils and the couple’srecommendations, which are included ina book co-authored by Linda Van Beck(see “Resources,” page 23), include Wisterwinners such as ‘Accent’ and ‘BarrettBrowning’. Other good choices include ‘Bracken-

hurst’ and one of its parents, ‘Ceylon’,share the same yellow-and-orange colorscheme. ‘Saint Keverne’, a lovely all-yel-low flower, is a Historic Daffodil, whichin ADS circles means it was bred or ingardens before 1940. The miniature‘Hawera’, with its several pendent all-yel-low florets is a little charmer. If you likefragrant, smaller flowers, try ‘Quail’,which bears several small-cupped yellowblooms per stem.

In northern Georgia, big, bold, vigor-ous ‘Bravoure’ flourishes. This large white-and-yellow trumpet daffodil puts on a bigshow in mid-season. For very early flow-ers, you can’t go wrong with ‘PeepingTom’, a cyclamineus hybrid in Division 6.The bold, long trumpet with its narrow,slightly reflexed petals makes a welcomepatch of gold in the garden. Another veryearly bloomer is ‘Monal’, with yellowpetals and a large, bright red cup.

UPPER MIDWEST AND MOUNTAIN STATESThe cold winters and short growing sea-son in the Upper Midwest and someMountain states don’t deter daffodils, butthey bloom later than elsewhere. Inplaces where the ground freezes early, likeMinnesota, bulbs should also be plantedearlier so they have time to set roots be-fore the ground freezes solid. To be safe,plant bulbs before October 15, and foradded protection, mulch the groundabove the bulbs once the ground freezes.

Mary Durtschi, whose garden inStockton, Utah, is an ADS Display Gar-den, says she has occasionally plantedbulbs as late as December 15 in beds thathad already been prepared, and then cov-ered with a thick layer of straw. Amongher favorites are ‘Rapture’, ‘FragrantRose’, ‘Ceylon’, and ‘Bravoure’.Good choices for cold-climate gardens

include ‘Golden Aura’, an all-yellow, large-cupped daffodil that blooms in late mid-season and makes a good show in thegarden. It also makes its way to the exhi-bition table now and again. The same canbe said of ‘Misty Glen’, which is all whitewith a green eye. Neither flower is large,but they bloom reliably. ‘Merlin’ is a late-blooming, short-

cupped flower with white petals and asmall, almost disc-shaped yellow cupedged with red. It’s a medium-sizedflower that will benefit from a little af-ternoon shade. ‘Segovia’ is one of the larger miniatures,

being almost two inches in diameter andabout a foot tall. When it’s happy, it makesa nice clump in the garden, and almost al-ways makes it to the show table as well. Itswhite-and-yellow, small-cupped flowersare borne singly.

MID-ATLANTICFrom the Ohio Valley across to the mid-

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Dainty miniature ‘Hawera’, left, combineswell with brightly colored pansies. AnotherWister Award winner, ‘Accent’, above, wasone of the first pink-and-white daffodils.

Atlantic states, growing conditions for daf-fodils are good, and most selections willflourish. I garden in the Cincinnati, Ohio,area, and one of my favorites is ‘FragrantRose’, a white-and-pink, large-cupped daf-fodil that is a mid- to late-season bloomerwith a roselike fragrance. Besides being agreat addition to a garden, it’s also a fre-quent winner at daffodil shows.The yellow-and-orange, double variety

‘Crackington’ is another frequent show-winner. The petals and sepals open or-ange, becoming paler as the flowermatures, while the rows of yellow petalslay in perfect symmetry, one row of pro-gressively smaller petals atop another.‘Dainty Miss’ is an all-white, smallflower—about two-and-a-quarter inchesin diameter—which grows about 12 inch-es tall. A perfectly formed and larger ver-sion of its parent, N. rupicola subsp.watieri, it blooms in late mid-season.The only split corona to have gained

the Wister Award is ‘Tripartite’. This all-yellow flower usually comes with two tothree dancing blooms per stem, with the r

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JOHN AND GERTRUDE WISTER GARDEN AWARDThe American Daffodil Society (ADS) sponsors an award program that recognizesoutstanding daffodil selections. The award program, which debuted in 1980, isnamed the John and Gertrude Wister Garden Award in honor of two influentialmembers of the ADS.A renowned landscape architect and horticulturist, John C. Wister (1887–1982)

was a charter member of the ADS and the third recipient of its Gold Medal, in1961. He graduated from Harvard University and studied at the Harvard School ofLandscape Architecture and the New Jersey Agricultural College. Wister had broad horticultural interests and involvement. He was secretary of the

American Rose Society for many years and was a member of some 50 horticulturalsocieties—including the American Horticultural Society (AHS)—and 30 scientif-ic and conservation organizations. He was the first director of the Arthur Hoyt ScottHorticultural Foundation and designed and created the Scott Arboretum at Swarth-more College in Pennsylvania, which now encompasses 300 acres.Wister was the author of four books: The Iris, Lilac Culture, Bulbs for American

Gardens, and Four Seasons in Your Garden.He was also the first horticulturist to re-ceive five major American horticultural awards: The Liberty Hyde Bailey Award pre-sented by the AHS; the Scott Medal; the American Peony Society’s A. P. SaundersMemorial Medal; the Honor and Achievement Award of the International Lilac So-ciety; and the Gold Medal of the American Daffodil Society.You can find a complete list of Wister winners on the ADS website (see “Re-

sources,” opposite page). —M.L.G.

Miniature ‘Peeping Tom’, here keeping company with trout lilies (Erythronium ‘Pagoda’), is a cheery-looking, early-blooming daffodil.

cup split into six segments lying backagainst the perianth. It blooms late in theseason. ‘Camelot’ is a sturdy, large-cupped, all-yellow flower that not onlymakes a beautiful display in the garden,but is the parent of more than 125 otherdaffodils, so if you have any interest inbreeding your own daffodils, take note.Its foliage remains green well into Junehere in the Ohio Valley. William Pannill, considered the dean

of amateur daffodil hybridizers in theUnited States, gardens in Martinsville,Virginia. Among the many daffodils he’sintroduced, he’s particularly proud of ‘In-trigue’, a lovely reverse bicolor. “I thinkit has dual value for show and garden,”says Pannill. Late in the season, its two orthree blooms to a stem open lemon-yel-low, with the cup maturing to white.Like most jonquil hybrids, it has a finescent. Another Pannill introduction is

‘Chromacolor’, which has a large flower,and is described as “an improved ‘Accent’of deeper color.” It’s now being mass-pro-duced for commercial sale.Another good choice for the mid-At-

lantic region is ‘Resplendent’, a GrantMitsch hybrid that bears a large, tall flowerwith yellow petals and a vivid orange-redcup. It blooms in mid-season here underdeciduous trees, which offer some protec-tion against the sun burning the cup.

FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHTWith so many amateur and professionalbreeders working on developing new daf-fodils, you can expect to see a steadystream of selections with improved char-acteristics such as color, longer bloomingseason, and disease resistance. Breedersare also striving to extend the range ofdaffodils into regions where they havenot previously been successfully cultivat-

ed. One of the more exciting develop-ments is work currently underway insouthern California to create a line offall-blooming daffodils. Now that’s real-ly something to look forward to. �

Mary Lou Gripshover is a past president ofthe American Daffodil Society. She gardensin the Cincinnati, Ohio, area.j

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SourcesBill the Bulb Baron, Santa Cruz, CA.(831) 236-8397. www.billthebulbbaron.com.Brent and Becky’s Bulbs, Gloucester,VA. (877) 661-2852.www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com.John Scheepers, Bantam, CT. (860)567-0838. www.johnscheepers.com.Mitsch Novelty Daffodils, Hubbard,OR. (503) 651-2742.www.mitschdaffodils.com.Nancy Wilson Miniature Daffodils,Garberville, CA. (707) 923-2407.www.asis.com/~nwilson.Old House Gardens, Ann Arbor, MI.(734) 995-1486. www.oldhousegardens.com.

ResourcesThe American Daffodil Society, P.O.Box 522, Hawkinsville, GA31026–0522. www.daffodilusa.org.� Members receive quarterly issuesof The Daffodil Journal, an invitationto the annual convention, and theopportunity to become an accrediteddaffodil judge. The ADS website of-fers daffodil information and links todaffodil societies and shows. Photosof all the Wister winners, as well asthousands of other daffodils, may beseen at www.daffseek.org.Daffodils by Theodore James, ClydeWachsberger, Harry Haralambou. Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York,New York, 2004.Daffodils for North American Gardensby Becky and Brent Heath. BrightSky Press, Houston, Texas, 2002.Daffodils in Florida: A Field Guide tothe Coastal South by Linda and SaraVan Beck, 2004 (available throughthe ADS website).

Suited for the mid-Atlantic region, ‘Intrigue’ was introduced by daffodil breeder William Pannill.