So disappointed

Morning Everyone
Can any recommended a good bug repellent for my rhododendrons they’re been nibbled away

Mine are up and blooming. Took the dog a walk in my local park at 8am this morning and it was so peaceful and all the daffodils and crocuses are all up and it looked so lovely. Signs of Spring, hooray!

Eight years ago we planted 3000 King Alfred Daffs in our back garden. They flowered beautifully for the first four years but then there were less...and less...and less, until last year most of them were blind, just lots of leaves. We always plucked off the flower heads as soon as they finished and left the leaves to dry out before cutting them down. When DH dug some of them up we found they had formed huge clumps and were now much nearer the surface of the soil than when we planted them. He divided them up and replanted more deeply. So far this year we have only leaves, but they never flowered before April/May anyway. Our small Tete-a-Tete Daffs are in full flower and have multiplied over the past three years. We never feed the bulbs but the plants around them are mulched and fed, so they might benefit from that. We live on the south coast, our soil is claggy clay and all the borders get sun for some part of the day. Tulips do well here, we never dig them up and store them as is advised, once they're in they stay there!

If you were here in south Denmark, or in the west of Scotland where I grew up the daffodils would not be out until April, so I gather you are in the south of England.

I am wondering about the soil in your flower-beds. To me it sounds as if it might be like ours, very poor and with a tendency to turn to clay a spade or so down into the earth.

If yours is similar, you will need to dig up all your bulbs and plants and dig a good layer of compost down into the beds, come the autumn. You may even need a good layer of new top soil as well.

If, like me, you avoid strenuous gardening, you might want to consider planting your spring bulbs in large tubs or pots. These will of course need to be protected from frost.

We have ours in pots mostly with some in the ground. I find little tête-à-tête are the most reliable and some bought from the RHS.

There's a lot of information here

www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=658

I had a lot of daffodils in the back garden and last year many came up blind. I think a lot of them were old and were also overcrowded. I lifted them and put the bulbs and offsets in tubs in an out of the way passage at the side of the house. Some look as though they are about to flower and I'll probably have a go at planting them back into the flower beds for next year - will probably plant those that flower back in the ground at 2-3 times their depth, having improved the soil first. Good luck.

It sounds like you have the narcissus fly in your soil I’m afraid. Dig up a blind bulb, cut it in half and all may be revealed. If that’s the case don’t waste your money on daffs of any kind for a few years. Although daffs seem to be everywhere they can be more difficult to keep than people think! ?

We have a field attached to our house. We have one early variety of daffodils which always come into bud for Christmas day and other varieties which bloom much later. Perhaps your variety of daffodils is a late bloomer?

Here in north east Scotland, my little Tete a tete daffs are flourishing in pots but the other ones are certainly not flowering anywhere yet.

Sunnysideup

Last Spring I had a very poor show of daffodils with most of them coming up ‘blind’. Undeterred, I planted 50 more in the Autumn hoping that I would get a better display this year. There must be over 200 bulbs in this particular spot now. Oh dear, what a poor show again. About six are in bloom but with very bowed heads and the rest are again ‘blind’. So disappointed.

Are you planting them deep enough, or too deep? Both can cause issues with flowering.
Bulbs are usually planted at twice their depth.

My daffodils were ‘blind’ as they were in too shady a spot - I googled this a few years ago and that was the general view. I think quality bulbs from a reputable supplier helps too.

We have a variety of daffs. The ones under a tree in the shade and the ones coming up through grass don’t flower, all the others are beautiful.

My daffodils are better this year...their second. I put short ones in because of the wind where I am.

ours haven't come up yet either, its a bit early isn't it? mind you, I don't know what day it is half the time atm

My neighbour has informed me she pinches of the heads not cuts them when finished flowering. I must admit she does have a wonderful display of daffs the next spring..

Just ignore them.I found out, one year, when during a period of ill health my garden was neglected that my little patch of daffodils put on their best display ever the following spring .Always leave the heads on and let the leaves wither away naturally.I know it is tempting to trim them following flowering but this was one way I found by letting them just do their own thing they rewarded me with their display the following year.A bit of feed does no harm look online for the best time to do this.

Slightly off topic but a couple of weeks ago I treated myself to a small pot of miniature daffodils from Sainsbury, they were £1.50 so I really wasn't expecting much. How wrong I was there are 12 beautiful miniature daffodils, really pretty and have lasted well

I left last year’s daffodil bulbs in a dish without any soil over the past year and they started to sprout recently so I planted them up and have got some lovely flowers now

Dig a couple up and see what the planting depth is. I usually plant in plastic pots and dot them about the garden. Maybe try a different spot in the autumn.

Hurdygurdy I have a similar but slightly different problem. Last year I bought some Ixia ‘spotlight’ bulbs which were a delight.
I lifted them in the autumn and so far efforts to remember where I put them have been been unsuccessful

I found a large net of daffodil bulbs in the greenhouse this morning which I had totally forgotten about. A lot had started sprouting, so I felt very guilty.

I've just shoved them in some troughs and pots in some compost and hope they do something. Probably not, but I felt I had to give them a chance, at least.

I also found another bag of very small bulbs, again forgotten about, which had also started sprouting, so they went into some compost as well.

Probably nothing will happen with them, but at least I feel I've given them a chance!

Last spring was warm and dry, with a prolonged drought. I'm not surprised that they failed to produce flowers.

Don't use a nitrogen fertiliser - as it can stop them flowering. I'd give them compost or a potash feed to help next year's blooms.

dustyangel I usually leave them on until they dry out enough to just pick them up without pulling them away. If they look scruffy I just cover them with compost, but usually other things in the borders, like hardy geraniums, grow up and cover the dried leaves.
Sunny I’d have thought it’s a bit late now to give a liquid feed but it might be worth a try...

Yes, the leaves were left on last year because I know that’s what one is supposed to do. Is it too late to perhaps give them a liquid feed? Rather fond of my gardener so won’t sack him!!