Daffodil Beds
© Photograhps by: Clay Higgins
I'm not a commercial grower of daffodils. I'm a "show and grower," which means I grow my daffodils as a hobby, and for the beautification of my home. In addition I put live daffodils into the shows and compete for ribbons. It also means that I have about 900 varieties of daffodils, which is about 895 varieties more than the average home owner. Therefore, when you look at this picture below, remember I'm just a home gardener like anyone else, that also grows and shows daffodils.
This picture is of one of my three large daffodil garden, and the largest. It is 50' by 50' and takes a lot more shoveling than I can handle. Inside this fenced off space, I have built 8 beds that are four feet wide by 45 feet long.
I have just completed the preparation of this garden for replanting. I improved it, turned the soil and got it ready after digging all the bulbs back in hot and muggy July. I took over 8 thousand bulbs out of the ground, counting the increase from being down for two years. Not all the bulbs will go back, but many will.
When I did the bulb extraction, I found that the soil was exceptionally hard, to the point that I considered the soil to be of the concistency of concrete. I had too much sand and not enough organic matter in the soil. Actually, it was so hard that I broke my old "trusty" garden digging fork and had to go buy a new one. I don't like the new one.
Building Daffodil Beds
You don't have to make your daffodil beds 45' log. Make them any size that you have space for, from a few bulbs to hundreds. Actually, all you have to do is make sure the bed will have direct sunlight, dig the soil deep, ensure that you have a high organic matter content, and make sure that the bed has good drainage.
Direct Sunlight
Daffodils require direct sunlight for at least 6 hours a day. Planting in speckled sunlight is adequate for your daffodils to grow and florish. Planting under evergreen trees, or on the shade side of your house usually is not good for the daffodils.
Dig the Soil Deep
Conventional wisdom has it that you have to dig down and enrich 18 to 24 inches of soil for daffodils to perform properly. For gardening purposes, digging and enriching 8 inches of soil will provide excellent growing conditions for garden daffodils. (Now if you are a daffodil show person, keep digging for another 10 inches for best show results.)
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