Blind or poor flowering daffodils

02 April 2009

If you've been disappointed with the performance of your daffodils, if they've had plenty of foliage but few flowers, they're probably suffering from 'Blindness'.  It is  not infectious so there's no need to panic, it is simply that the bulbs have run out of steam and don't have enough energy to produce a  full compliment of petals.  The result ? No flower heads, or empty, papery flower heads. 

It may be that the bulbs, if naturalised, have simply become too crowded in which case it's be worth lifting affected clumps in the autumn, dividing and then replanting them further apart.  If you decide to do this, mark the spot with a cane or similar, just so you know where to dig as they won't be visible above ground in the autumn!  If weather conditions have prevented the bulbs from taking up as many nutrients as they need over the last few years, this too can cause daffodil blindness.  Whichever of these options is to blame it is well worth feeding the clumps of bulbs now, with a foliar feed watered on to the leaves, and a feed applied to the soil too.  If we do have a very dry summer, try to water the daffodils , this will help the bulbs to continue to take up nutrients and so bulk up in preparation for flower production.  It may sound like quite a bit of work, but it should return them to their golden glory !

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