Quantity and quality can be found from bulk, bulb suppliers. Plan out your needs early and get an order placed.

An update on my Daffodil purchases for flowering  next spring. Our local nursery has good connections with Holland and I guess that is where they source a large range of different varieties of bulbs. This range is then laid out in wicker baskets and sold by weight – £2.45 per kilo (well we are part of Europe and it probably illegal to sell in pounds and ounces!)

Reasons for Buying Loose Bulbs

• This weekend I bought 5 varieties from about 35 that I could have chosen from. This is a wider range than you see in pre-packs.
• I planned growing them for cut flowers and they are as cheap as a bunch of flowers you will buy in spring and the bulbs can be planted out to naturalise. A double win.
• You have the fun of choosing select varieties and growing your own.
• Picking bulbs from large baskets allows you to be selective about the bulbs you choose. No undersized, soft or rotting bulbs in my bags.
• Spoilt for choice I decided to buy varieties that were 14 inches or so tall. The 18″ varieties will not do as well in our windy area and I needed some yard stick or I would have bought too many sorts.
• The bulbs were in good condition, had nor been over handled or left to dry out. I could burrow down the basket to find bulbs I wanted.
• I tried to get uniform bulbs. For many varieties I selected round bulbs with no offsets. Others I selected bulbs with 2 or 3 noses. Hopefully I will remember which and be able to assess the quality and quantity of flower so that next year I will buy on a more informed basis.

Varieties Purchased

• Strictly narcissus the Dutch Master is a traditional Daffodil with golden-yellow flowers in mid-spring. My largest purchase.
• Obdam should be fragrant and a later-flowering double daffodil. Its blooms are an eye-catching cream yellow.
• Binkie is division 2 in Daffodil terms but not football. It will have bi-coloured petals of lemon and yellow with 1 or2 flowers per stem. They make excellent cut flowers I hope.
• Verger is a Division 3 Small-cupped Daffodils. White petals (perianth) with an orange yellow shallow cup (one third of petal length).
• Geranium has a pure white perianth, with a bright orange cup. It is one of the multi headed Narcissus tazettas and I am interested to see how they perform as they are said to be excellent for pots so here is hoping.

For more information on the 14 divisions for Daffodils and details of the various parts of the flower from Perianth to Spathe read Gardeners Tips This page also contains the Top 12 Daffodil Tips from the Daffodil Society.