THE FIRST SIGN OF SPRING

One of the first signs of spring in our garden is the appearance of daffodils, most of which have been planted in pots.

There are thirteen different types of daffodils (narcissi) and we have in our garden most of the different types.

Type 1 - Large Trumpet

The most well known type of daffodils, large trumpet daffodils come in various sizes from about 30 to 60cm and are easily recognised by their large trumpets. Appearing from early to mid spring, our collection include:

Dutch Master

- introduced in 1938, it grows to about 60cm tall and has large gold yellow flowers.

Mount Hood

- one of the best white daffodils, Mount Hood had creamy-white trumpets that get whiter as they get older. It grows to about 35cm tall.

Topolino

- sweetly fragrant with cream-white flowers that have lemon-yellow flowers and grows to about 25cm tall.

W.P. Milner

- introduced in 1869, W.P. Milner grows to about 50cm tall.

Type 2 - Large Cupped

We have a ew different large cupped daffodils, which have flowers that have cups that are more the one third of the size of its outer petals but not as large as the trumpet daffodils.

Carlton

- Flowering in March and April, Carlton is an award winning daffodil with sulphur-yellow flowers and grows to about 38cm tall.

Fontune

- An older variety, Fortune grows to about 40cm tall and has yellow flowers that have a touch of orange at the end of their cups. Itn normally flowers during March.

Ice Follies

- Growing to about 40cm tall, Ice Follies has pure white petals with a lemon cup that quickly turns to white. It flowers in March

We also have St Patrick's Day and Tamara

Type 3 - Small Cupped

The cups of the small cupped variety are less the a third of the size of the flowers.

Segovia

- A dwarf daffodil, that grows to just 20cm tall, Segovia has pure white flowers with a yellowish cup.

Type 4 - Doubles

Doubles have a sweet fragrance but are not everybody's favourite daffodil due to their frilly outer, though they do include one of my favourites, Rip Van Winkle.

Bridal Crown

- has creamy white strongly scented flowers and grows to about 42cm tall.

Golden Ducat

- Flowering normally in April, Golden Ducat has tall large golden flowers and because of its height, about 45cm tall, is not ideal for planting in your rose beds.

Ice King

- An early April daffodil, Ice King has ivory-white petals with a lemon-yellow pleated collar that surrounds a yellow and ivory centre. It grows to about 40cm tall.

Raplete

- Growing to about 35cm tall, Raplete has white flowers that have peach-pink segments. It normally flowers in March and April.

Rip Van Wickle

- Clearly one of my favourites, Rip Van Winkle is ideal for your rose beds as it only grows to about 15cm tall. The petals of its yellow flowers are very narrow and twisted in shape. It flowers in |March and April.

Sir Winston Churchill

- Named after the wartime leader and prime minister. Sir Winston Churchill has whitw flowers with tiny orange-yellow petals at tyhe centre. It grows to about 38cm and flowers in April.

Tahiti

- Growing to about 40cm tall, Tahiti has golden-yellow flowers that are interspersed at the centre with smaller bright orange-red ones. It flowers in March-April.

Type 5 - Triandrus

Because of their size, until most other daffodils, triandrus daffodils are ideal for underplanting around roses as they don't look a mess when they have finished flowering. The flowers of these tiny daffodils give a 'laid back' appearance.

Hawera

- An April flowering daffodil, Hawara grows to just 20cm tall and produces small canary-yellow flowers, 2 or 3 per stem.

Thalia

- Often referred to as the "Orchid Daffodil". Thalia is a late flowering daffodil with pure white flowers. It grows to about 30cm tall so is not ideal for underplanting.

Type 6 - Dwarfism Cyclamineus

Dwarf Cyclamineus are a early flowering daffodil that are a smaller version of the trumpet daffodil.

February Gold

- Flowering in March, February Gold has yellow flowers that have a golden-yellow trumpet and grows to about 30cm tall.

Jack Snipe

- An unusual daffodil with creamy-white petals and a primrose trumpet, Jack Snipe grows to about 25cm tall and flowers in March.

Jet Fire

- Slightly scented, Jet Fire has golden petals with a long true orange trumpet. It flowers in March and grows to about 25cm tall.

Type 7 - Jonquils

The green petals of the Jonquils daffodil are unlike most other daffodils as they resemble rushes rather the normal 'flat' of others.

Bell Song

- can have up to three flowers per stem and has white flowers with a pinkish cup.

Pipit

- Producing an unusual combination of colours to its flowers, makes it stand out from other daffodils as its petals are lemon-yellow and ita small cup as it ages become almost white. It grows to about 23cm tall and flowers in March-April.

Sailboat

- Producing 2 or 3 white flowers with cream cups per stem, Sailboat is a fragrant April flowering daffodil. It grows to about 25cm tall.

Our other Jonquil daffodils include Golden Echo, Kedron, Lemon Sailboat, Marie Curie Diamond and Pueblo.

Type 8 - Tazettas

Strongly fragrant they produce clusters of up to 20 flowers per stem

Canaliculatus

- has greyish leaves and up to 7 small flowers per stem.

Minnow

- has between 2 and 4 creamy-yellow flowers on 25cm tall stems.

We also have Cheerfulness, Grand Sohail D'Ord and Martinette

Type 9 - Poeticus

As a result of normally being late flowering care has to be taken to make certain that these daffodils, which grow to about 25cm tall, sufficiently moisturised.

Type 10 - Species and Wild Daffodils

This class includes many different types of wild and species daffodils, so of which increase by seeds.

Canaliculatus

- these sweetly scent daffodils grow to about 15cm tall and flower in March and April,

Type 11 - Split-Corona Daffodils

Sometimes referred to as collar or orchid daffodils, they have cups that are split forming an inner collar layer.

Apricot Whirl

- Flowers in March and April and grows to about 45cm tall.

Type 12 - Miscellaneous

Daffodils that do not fall into any of the other divisons.

Tete-a-Tete

- One of the best known daffodils, Tete-a-Tete has bright yellow flowers that have a paler yellow trumpet. They flower in March and can grow to 20cm tall.