Daffodils are a sure sign that spring has arrived. As they flower from February to May, the flowering season is soon coming to an end, and they can end up looking tatty once they’ve finished blooming. While it can be tempting to chop them down as soon as they finish flowering, gardening expert Alan Titchmarsh recommended avoiding this.
Instead, Alan advises leaving them for six weeks first and then removing the faded flowers. After six weeks, gardeners can chop them down to ground level, which will help them look much neater.
The expert also shared a simple way to “guarantee” daffodils will flower next year, and it involves feeding them.
In a YouTube video with Waitrose & Partners, he said: “One thing you can do to give them an extra helping hand is to feed them.
“I’m an organic gardener and blood, fish and bone for me is the fertiliser of choice.
“It contains the three main plant nutrients — nitrogen, phosphates and potash.”
Alan said feeding daffodils with a handful or two of blood, fish and bone fertiliser should ensure the plant produces more flowers next year.
He added: “The combination of taking off those seed heads, allowing the sun to photosynthesise through the leaves and stalks and feeding the bulbs, and bunging a bit of fertiliser around them will guarantee you flowers next year.”
If you find daffodils produce foliage but no flowers, they could be suffering from “blindness”, which can be caused by a lack of space, too much shade or poor quality soil.
If this does happen, simply dig them up in the autumn and replant them elsewhere in the garden, ensuring that they have the conditions they need.
However, it may take a couple of years for the plant to eventually flower again.
