How to grow Daffodil

Narcissus · jonquil, narcissus

Spring bulb planted in autumn. The bulb needs 12–16 weeks of winter cold to flower and blooms from late winter to mid spring; each flower has a cup- or trumpet-shaped centre. Unlike tulips, it keeps flowering year after year.

Daffodil — Photo: W.carter, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts

Type	Flower
Family	Amaryllidaceae
Light	Full sun
Soil pH	6–7
Frost	tolerates light frost
Germination	150 days
Where it grows	Open ground

When to plant

Plant in autumn, about a month before your first autumn frost, so the roots grow before winter; it flowers or crops the next season.

Dates for your city are on the frost dates page.

Frost dates · When to plant

Care

Open ground

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 7 days	—	balanced (NPK), at the start of the stage
Flowering	every 7 days	—	—

Growing notes

Light

Full sun to part shade, for example under deciduous trees. Avoid deep shade, where plants stop flowering.

Soil

Fertile, well-drained soil; pH 6.0–7.0. Avoid waterlogged ground, where bulbs rot.

Care

Plant in early to mid autumn, three times as deep as the bulb is tall (about 15 cm) and 10–15 cm apart. Water well after planting, then only in long dry spells while the leaves grow. Feed when the shoots appear. Remove faded flowers so the plant does not set seed, and leave the leaves for at least six weeks, until they yellow. Divide clumps that grow crowded and flower less.

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.