Expert: Kenneth Joergensen - 9/27/2006

Question
I am in zone 5 and can't wait to put my 500 Mt. Hood daffodils in the empty bed under a large tree in the front of my home.  I was thinking of adding muscari, but I am not excited about looking at the dying foliage for the weeks after everything blooms.  Any suggestions about what to plant (ground cover or other) with the daffodils instead, to cover up the dying foliage?  It will be all shade at that time.  

Answer
Since your bed will be shaded all the time, I do not recommend combining with any flowering plants.

You have two options as I see it:
- use a ground cover like pathysandra, vinca minor, etc. Vinca minor should do very well and it does not spread aggresively.

- you can plant various groups of hostas, hardy ferns, etc. I like daffodils planted in small groups instead of large drifts. e.g. I would plant the daffodils in round patches of 7-9 per group. In between the groups, you can plant hostas, ferns, etc. These will start to grow as the flowers fade, and by the time the foliage turns from green to brown, you will have leaved out hostas and ferns. This can be a great combination.

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