It’s time for daffodils

March 31, 2013 at 12:00a.m.

By Kathy Van Mullekom

Daily Press (Newport News, Va.)

It was a long winter, yet through it all, daffodils by the thousands will emerge to remind you spring is here.

Daffodils are easy, enjoyable and enchanting, looking like oversized cousins to the smaller buttercups that later fill meadows and open fields.

Voles, squirrels and deer dislike daffodils, which are super-good reasons to incorporate the fall- planted bulbs in your yard.

When bloom time is done, daffodil foliage yellows and browns, a look that is not attractive but is necessary. This four- to six-week process helps the plant manufacture food for next year’s flowers. Much of that food is transported to the bulb below ground. Removing, braiding, rubber banding or tying the foliage interrupts that important process because it limits the amount of green that is getting sunlight. An easy disguise is to interplant hostas, coral bells, lilies and other perennials that leaf out in early spring.

When daffodils don’t bloom, there can be any number of reasons, according to the American Daffodil Society. Some common reasons include: bulbs need to be fed slow-release 5-10-10 (too much nitrogen benefits foliage, not flower); bulbs compete with other root systems; bulbs lack good drainage; bulbs may have a virus; bulbs may have suffered bad growing conditions previous season or bulbs need dividing. For more details, visit www.daffodilusa.org/daffodils/blooming.

Under the best of best growing conditions, daffodils will multiply and outlast any of us, so expect the best and enjoy your daffodils indoors where you can experience their innermost beauty.