Our four year old says "Yellow is a happy color"

It's daffodil time.  One of those incredible 'reap what you sow' lessons. It takes some faith in sweet ol' Mother Nature to plant a little bulb now and expect a glorious yellow surprise in the spring. But it works.  Every year.

Daffodils are favorites because they are one of the first little bursts of happiness in the drab colored spring and because they are deer resistant.  Yep, deer don't like daffodils.  They will munch your tulips to the ground but they will let us enjoy those refreshing daffodils.

So, now is the time to get those sweet bulbs in the ground.  When you buy daffodil bulbs, look for nice, firm, solid ones with uniform color. Don't buy soggy ones or discolored and mottled ones.  They will more than likely rot in the ground.

When you plant these pretty little bulbs, you need to plant them three times as deep as the bulbs are tall.  So 6 to 8 inches deep is perfection.  Plant them with the little hairy rooted side down and the pointed end up towards the sky. 

You know those cool looking circular bulb planters with the handle on top?  Avoid those. They are a waste of $10. The best way to plant daffodil bulbs is to clear out the soil of a bed about 7 or 8 inches deep.  Remove all the dirt in that spot whether its a 1 foot square spot or the entire bed.  Just dig it up and set it aside.  Then you place your daffodil bulbs right on the surface of the soil. They should be one or two bulb widths apart from each other.  If they remain touching when planted, they will probably rot during the winter. If you space them more than 6 inches apart, then they seem too sparse when they bloom.

Daffodils prefer nice soft soil that drains well.  If your soil is compacted then loosen it up a bit. Plant the bulbs where they will receive full or partial sun.  If daffodils are too shady, they will not bloom.

After your bulbs are in place, replace the soil on top being careful to keep the bulbs upright.  If you are planting the bulbs in a location where you can not dig up an entire area without disturbing other plants, you can use a huge (2 1/2" to 3 ") drill bit and drill.  Use the drill and bit to specifically and carefully dig holes. Place the bulbs inside and cover with the soil.  Be sure to get deep enough.  If daffodil bulbs are not planted deep enough, they will spend all their time and energy making many small bulbs that will not produce flowers.

You will be rewarded greatly in the spring by your efforts now. As you chose the varieties you want to plant, pay attention to the height, the blooming time, and of course the color.  For a fun and full planting, use different heights and colors to add variety and dimension to your beds. 

Daffodils are labeled with the expected blooming time.  Usually early season, mid season, or late season.  If you want to extend your daffodil blooming times, get bulbs of each time frame.  You will have beauty from early to late spring.  The only drawback of this plan is that the BOOM impact statement isn't made.  It's a more understated but continuous look.  If you want to make a huge statement and have your daffodils be front stage, then plant daffodil bulbs of just one blooming season so they will all be blooming at the same time. The drawback of this plan is that your BOOM only lasts a few weeks. Oh, but it was a marvelous BOOM! 

In my past experiences, early season bulbs are wonderful to see so early in the spring but usually get snowed on.  When that happens, their bloom time is dramatically reduced.  Late season bulbs are gorgeous as well, but it seems like there are already so many other plants popping out of the ground by then, they are overlooked.  I prefer the mid season blooming daffodils.  They are perfection.





Decide what look you are going for in your daffodil adventure. Either something simple like this to get your spring color on. 






Or possibly something extreme like this to get your spring color going. This is called NATURALIZATION. Click here for an incredible link to an article by USU Extension on how to naturalize an area with daffodils on your property. 


Something in between is the perfect fit for most. Jerry Goodspeed with USU Extension tells us:

            “Fall is an opportune time to walk through your favorite nursery and enjoy the pictures on the bulb boxes,” Goodspeed concluded. “Don’t resist the temptation to buy enough for a large grouping in the landscape, and be brave when it comes to selecting varieties. You might surprise yourself with something spectacular next spring, even if it is by accident.”

Remember 5 or 6 months ago when you saw all the daffodils blooming and you thought to yourself "I love those, I should really plant some THIS year?" Remember that?  Now is the time. Happy fall and happy planting.  You reap what you sow in all aspects of life.

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com