Expert: C.L. Fornari - 3/26/2007

Question
I live in Southern California.  I recently purchased daffodils in bloom in pots and planted them all in the ground.  they were beautiful and in bloom for about two weeks,not the flowers have all died.  Will they bloom again?  If so how many times and for how long?  Will they bloom again next year?  Do i need to do anything to them now?  thanks so much.  Dori

Answer
Daffodils (and most other bulbs) need a chilling period in order to bloom every year.  They need to be kept at 35-40 degrees or below for 12 to 15 weeks. In colder climates, winter does this for us, but in your area the bulbs are chilled in coolers before being potted up for sale.  

If you live in the mountains, say, where they will get this chilling period naturally you can leave them in the ground, fertilize them once a year, and they will bloom and spread every year.  My guess is that where you are it won't get cold enough for long enough - if you don't see other people growing daffodils in their gardens around you, that is probably the reason.  Yes, you could take them out of the ground and put them in a cold fridge or other cooler for the required time, and then plant them again, but I think that it would be alot easier to just buy some in pots every spring like you did this year and enjoy them while they last.

If you decide to try to dig and chill, let them stay in the ground until their foliage turns yellow by itself - the foliage feeds the bulbs until it goes dormant.  GIve a mild liquid fertilizer now, and as soon and the foliage is died back, dig them, put them in a paper bag, fill the bag with dry potting soil and store them in a cool, dark place.  In the fall put them in your cooling device and plant after they've been chilled for about 15 weeks.

I hope this helps!
C.L. Fornari
www.gardenlady.com