Reproduction, Planting And Caring For Daffodils

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Read the previous part. ← Growing daffodils in the garden

Do you want to grow a daffodil?

Reproduction of daffodils

Narcissus Jonquillium

The narcissus (and hyacinth) bulb is perennial, in contrast to the tulip, in which it is renewed annually. The storage scales of a daffodil (there are from 9 to 17) live up to 4 years, increasing in size along with the bulb. Later, the outer scales become thinner, turning into protective shells. The roots are fibrous, penetrate up to 30 cm deep.

Daffodils are propagated vegetatively by children, which are separated from the mother's bulb after 2-4 years. But even not separated, but already large young bulbs form their flower arrows and bloom together with the mother bulb, forming large 2-3-apical bulbs with 2-3 flowers.

The babies are separated from the mother's bulb only after the death of those scales in the sinuses of which they were formed. It takes 24-25 months from the bud to flowering of the renewal bud. A young bulb from a baby by the third year reaches its maximum reproduction rate. Therefore, marketable bulbs are dug up no earlier than three years after planting.

Gardener's guide

Plant nurseries Stores of goods for summer cottages Landscape design studios

The life span of narcissus roots is 10-11 months, after which they gradually die off, and in August, new young roots begin to grow. With excessively moistened soil, the dying off of old roots is delayed, and the regrowth of new ones may already begin, even in storage. Bulbs must be handled with great care, as damaged roots cannot be restored and these bulbs will develop very poorly.

At the end of winter, the growth of bulbs is limited only by the air temperature: at soil temperatures above + 5 ° C, it already begins. Subsequent cold snap can damage both the underground and aboveground parts of the bulbs. This explains the lower winter hardiness of daffodils in comparison with tulips. Long winter thaws followed by frosts are especially dangerous for double varieties, tacettes. In this case, it is reasonable not to rush to dig up the area with the "missing" daffodils - they can recover from living small children.

Planting daffodils

Planting time: in each soil-climatic zone it is different. It is important that the bulbs are well rooted before winter. In the middle lane, planting in mid-August allows daffodils to grow roots up to 20 cm long, and at the end of September - only 5 cm. For the Northwest, planting daffodils is optimal in late August - early September, after small-bulbous ones. The Dutch believe that early planting, as soon as the babies separate after digging and drying the bulbs, prevents them from drying out, makes it possible to root well and successfully overwinter.

Daffodils tubular yellow

Landing site: slides, ridges, lawns, mixborders, tree trunks. It should be light, semi-shady, well-drained, with a pH of at least 6.5. The soil is light loamy or sandy loam, with a depth of the fertile layer of at least 40-45 cm. But practically daffodils grow on any soil. It is only necessary to take into account that sandy soils freeze deeper than clay soils.

The groundwater level is desirable no higher than 60 cm from the soil surface. Heavy clay soils must be improved by adding 20-30 kg of sand or 10-15 kg of peat per 1 m2. Peat soils are limed at pH 6.0 and below. Adding 350-400 g of carbonic lime per 1 m2 increases the pH by one unit.

When choosing a planting site, it is important to protect the plants from cold winds. A month before planting, prepare the soil: loosen or dig up with the introduction of 5-20 kg per 1 m2 of humus, 50-100 g of superphosphate, 40-60 g of nitroammofoska, 200 g of ash, 200 g of bone meal. Instead of the listed mineral fertilizers, you can put 1-2 granules of long-acting complex fertilizer AVA into each well under the bulb.

Never apply under the bulbous fresh manure in the year of planting. For daffodils, you can apply it 2-3 years before planting, for tulips - 3-4 years. Before planting, the bulbs are carefully examined, diseased, soft, damaged ones are removed. They take care of fragile young roots that cannot be restored. Before planting, the bulbs are kept for 20-30 minutes in a dark pink solution of potassium permanganate or in a 0.3% -0.5% solution of karbofos, or they are powdered with foundation for the prevention of diseases and protection against damage by an onion mite.

Planting depth is usually equal to three times the height of the bulbs from the bottom to the ground (8-12 cm of the ground from the bottom). The distance between the bulbs is usually 1.5-2 times the diameter of the bulb.

Daffodil care

Crown daffodils

In the spring, they remove the shelter, loosen the soil after rains and irrigation, and feed with full fertilizer (if not using AVA). Water the daffodils if necessary - in hot dry weather, not on the leaves, to the entire depth of the roots (up to 30 cm, 2-3 watering cans per 1 m2). During the growing season, it is imperative to regularly inspect the plantings, remove and destroy sick, withering plants.

Top dressing with complex fertilizers is given at least four times a season, if you do not use a complex long-acting AVA fertilizer. From high-speed complex fertilizers choose any - nitroammofosku, Kemira. Traditionally they do: the first feeding with Kemira 80 - 100 g per 1 m2 during the period of mass shoots; the second - 60-70 g during budding; the third - the same during mass flowering, the fourth - after flowering with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers (P: K = 2: 1). Instead, when planting or in spring, it is enough to add 2-3 AVA pellets at once for three years of feeding the bulbs. In the spring, it will be enough to give one top dressing with Kemira or urea to maintain the growth of vegetative mass and flower arrows

It is recommended to cut flowers in dry weather in the morning or in the evening, it is preferable to break out rather than cut off the arrows because of the danger of transmitting infection from diseased plants with the tool. It is better to store daffodils with stems up, wrapped in dry paper at a temperature of + 1.5 … 2 ° C - up to 12 days. Before placing in a vase, the oblique cut is updated under water and placed in a nutrient solution: 1 tbsp. l. sugar per 1 liter of water. On the first day, daffodils release slimy toxic substances into the water, so they are not combined with other flowers. After 1-2 days, change the water and combine the daffodils with other types of flowers. Preservatives are added to the water from decaying stems in a vase: 0.1 g of boric acid; 0.003 g of potassium permanganate; or 0.001 g of salicylic acid. In addition, several crystals of citric or ascorbic acid are added to the water, or 1 tbsp. l. vinegar in 1 liter of water. Daffodils stand longer cut in an acidic environment (pH 3-4.5)

Notice board

Kittens for sale Puppies for sale Horses for sale

Daffodil digging time

The beginning of July, when, after flowering, the leaves begin to "disperse", their tips turn yellow. If you wait until the leaves turn yellow and lodge, then during digging due to the formation of a dividing layer of cells at the base of the leaves, the leaves easily fall off the nest of the bulbs, which makes digging difficult. At the same time, the boundaries of planting are lost, you can cut the bulbs with a shovel. Late digging is dangerous in that the bulbs by this time form young roots, which are certainly injured during digging, sorting and drying, and will not recover. Unrooted bulbs are weakened, prone to various diseases, hibernate poorly and bloom poorly.

Storing daffodils

The shortest is only for drying and separating large children. Dry the bulbs under a canopy or in a ventilated area at room temperature. They can be planted almost immediately after digging. If necessary, flowering plants are transplanted with a large lump. Early planting ensures good rooting, successful wintering and abundant flowering.

Shelter as such is usually not done, except for high (up to 10 cm) mulching with peat. (Unlike tulips, daffodils "love" peat.) But for varieties with double flowers and tacettoid daffodils, additional cover (spruce branches, dry leaves) is required

Planting material in varieties can be purchased at the All-Russian Institute of Selection and Technology for Horticulture and Nursery, in specialized nurseries and stores

Prevention of diseases and pests of daffodils (and tulips)

Daffodils Jonquillia and tubular

Bulbous crops often suffer from fungal infections (sclerocial and gray rot), viral mosaics, which are transmitted with plant sap during cutting and aphids (affected plants must be destroyed). Bulbs are damaged by a large daffodil fly, onion and tuberous hoverflies, and a root onion mite

To protect the bulbs, it is recommended to adhere to some general rules

• Timely planting and digging of bulbs. Return of daffodils to the same place in 5-6 years

• Alternation of crops that do not have the same pests and diseases. Use joint planting of phytoncidal plants: calendula, tagetes, nasturtium, pyrethrum, cochia, tarragon

• Regularly inspect the plantings and immediately dig up affected plants with a large clod of earth, remove them from the site and destroy. • Lime acidic soils that impair plant growth and development. Slaked lime, dolomite flour is applied in the fall before planting when digging the soil (350-500 g per 1 m2)

• Before planting, pickling of bulbs in potassium permanganate (0.15%) from diseases and in karbofos (0.2-0.3%) from pests within 30 minutes

• During the growing season, prophylactic spraying of plantings of daffodils with fungicides is practiced: 1% Bordeaux liquid and 0.5-0.6% copper oxychloride

. 3%)