March is finally here, and after all the snow, sleet, ice, and frigid temperatures, I am beyond ready for spring and, most especially, daffodils. I have a large yard with space for a naturalized daffodil planting. I add at least 25 bulbs each year – sometimes many more than that. I have been doing this since 1998, so I now have hundreds of blooms to look forward to each spring. Many years, the foliage pokes above the soil only to be buried by late winter and early spring snows. Other years, early blooms get buried in snow or pummeled by wind and rain. But daffodils are remarkably hardy and resilient plants, and they always manage to shine before going back to sleep for another year.
At first, I concentrated on yellow varieties recommended for massed, naturalized plantings. One year, I tried a bag of mixed cultivars and loved the mix of white, yellow, and orange colors and how the bloom time was extended significantly.
Many cultivars of daffodils come in color combinations such as pink(apricot) and orange, white and yellow together, all-white, white and orange, and orange and orange/red. Shades can be pastel or more saturated. A variety of flower shapes, bloom times, and heights also help add interest to your spring plantings.
According to the University of Wisconsin Extension, the first all-white daffodils were developed in England in the 1600s. White daffodils were wildflowers native to Northern Europe, and during the 17th century, people began growing them in their gardens. Breeders have selected and hybridized varieties over the centuries, and white daffodils are now available in almost all divisions. The University of Wisconsin notes that many white or reverse bicolor cultivars with ‘Madame de Graff’ in their ancestry are very susceptible to root rot and do not perform as well as many yellow types. I have had very good luck with the white and non-yellow varieties I grow.
Daffodils are separated into 12 divisions in the current classification system, the University of Wisconsin says. The system describes the configuration of perianth segments (petals) and the corona (trumpet or cup).
•Division 1 includes trumpet daffodils of garden origin. These have one flower per stem with the corona as long or longer than the perianth segments. ‘Mount Hood’ is a popular all-white cultivar in Division 1.
•Division 2 is large cup-shaped daffodils of garden origin with one flower per stem and a corona of more than one-third but less than equal to the length of the perianth segments. ‘Misty Glen’ is a pearlescent white daffodil with a green eye in the cup in Division 2.
•Division 3 includes small-cupped daffodils of garden origin. These have one flower per stem with the corona less than one-third the length of the perianth.
•Division 4 is double daffodils of garden origin with one or more flowers per stem, with the doubling of the perianth segments or the corona or both. ‘Tahiti’ is a Division 4 selection with golden double perianth segments and a smaller double orange corona.
•Division 5 includes triandrus daffodils of garden origin with two or more pendent flowers to a stem. Perianth segments are reflexed. ‘Ice Wings’ has multiple small flowers per stem with long trumpets and reflexed petals and is in Division 5.
•Division 6 is cyclamineus daffodils of garden origin. These usually have one flower per stem with long trumpets and swept-back petals. The flower is at an acute angle to the stem, and the neck (pedicle) is very short. ‘Jenny’ is in Division 6 and has milky-white petals and a yellow trumpet that fades to creamy white.
•Division 7 is jonquilla daffodils of garden origin. This includes scented flowers with tubular leaves and yellow flowers up to five centimeters across.
•Division 8 is tazetta daffodils of garden origin with bunched flowers, three to 20 per short stem. Leaves are broad, and these flowers are also fragrant. Most hybrids are tender and used for forcing or container cultivation.
•Division 9 is poeticus daffodils of garden origin characterized by white petals and a flat-frilled bright red cup of scented flowers. These cultivars typically bloom later than other narcissi. ‘Actea’ is in Division 9 and has large, flat white petals and a shallow yellow cup with a red edge.
•Division 10 includes wild forms and hybrids. All are miniature and less spectacular than those of garden origin.
•Division 11 is split corona daffodils of garden origin. The corona of the flower is split, usually for more than half its length. ‘Sovereign’ is in Division 11 and features a broad, ruffled yellow-orange split corona that almost hides the white petals.
•Finally, Division 12 includes miscellaneous daffodils, which do not fall into any other division. If you are looking for daffodils with white petals and a pinkish or apricot corona, ‘Precocious’ offers large, dark rose-pink cups.
