Wednesday, March 11, 2009

A Bounty of Daffodils

The daffodils bloomed early this year--unfortunately. There are big clumps of daffodils lining the road coming up the hill leading into our parking area behind the house. Two weeks ago they started to bloom; daffodils can withstand temperatures to 28 degrees F> Last week, the temps got down into the teens. Frostbitten daffies do not stiffen or blacken, but their stems grow weak, kink in the middle, and the bloom on top leans over and lies down for a hibernation, promising to come again next year. 

Most of my daffodils looked like that when the warm springlike temps occurred last week and are lasting yet today. Monday, I walked among them and picked the blooms that just couldn't hold up their heads any longer. They don't last very long with their weakened stems immersed in water, but they do last a day or maybe two. 

In the past I've picked "bushels" of daffodil flowers because the weather forecasts were predicting a severe frost that night. What a sight in the house--every table is covered with vases of daffodils. Othertimes, I've left them alone blooming along the driveway when the predictions were below 32 but above 28.

There weren't as many to pick this year. Either the clumps are diminishing, or there are more to bloom yet. The last week of March is the usual blooming time for daffies here.  I've posted some photos of my indoor daffodil garden this spring.