Topic: Forcing Daffs

[wahaj]

hey,

Went to focus today and bought 4.5 kg worth of daffs for 75p. they all look in pretty good health actually lol.

so i'm wondering it's probs too late to plant them into the ground now. well i know i can still plant them but they might be really late flowering right? or may not flower at all this year.

i'm wondering if i can force them indoors first and then once they've done their thing, dry and store them still autumn and then plant them outside.

now dr d g hessayon says it can be done as long as i used seed compost rather than bulb fibre and keep it in darkness for about 8 weeks.

what would you suggest? i have a patch that i can plant a lot of them into...but some will be left over and i'd love to try them as indoor plants.

do you think it's too late to put them in the ground?

[Robert_Brenchley]

It's never too late as long as they're alive. I've planted as late as this and they've been OK.

[Tulipa]

Wahaj, I planted loads of bulbs this time last year and had quite a good display of flowers.  If the bulbs don't flower they will at least be making good stores for a better display next year so it is well worth planting.

The other option is to plant them in tubs/troughs now and then you can move the best to where they give the best view and plant them in their final home later.

Hope this helps...

T.

[wahaj]

thanks guys.

and yes tulipa....that's what i've done with a lot of bulbs this year....about 200 of them have gone into cell trays with a bulb in each but plant very shallowly as they're very shallow trays. but i didn't know you could plant daffs like that...even if it was temporarily. and another problem i have is compost....just haven't got any left....and there's so many bulbs, i'll need a lot of big pots etc.

but thanks for yours and roberts advice. i'll pop most of them in the ground when i get time and then some i'll experiment with.

i'm going to my friend's house in leicester tommorow and she's still got a few hundred that need planting....and hopefully i'm gonna help her gets hers in the ground aswell.

[laurieuk]

Daffodil bulbs planted at anytime or even if not planted but moist will flower as the flower embryo etc. are all formed the previous year, this is why you can grow them like hyacinths with just water. The only problem with late planting is that they may not form enough root to grow strong and form flowers the following year but if left will be OK for years afterwards, provided the foliage is left to die back and feed the bulb.