Daffodils-No Flowers

Living in Phoenix Arizona, I have about 300 Daffodil plants without flowers. The plants are about 12/15 inches tall and were planted about five years ago. The first year they were beautiful and the blooms are fewer every year.

Help would be appreciated.

They may need to be thinned out.The bulbs multiply each year.At least with my Iris if they quit blooming I'll dig them up and replant cutting the tubers into smaller pieces.And the next year they will bloom again.I may be wrong but that would be my conclusion.

Crowding could be the culprit as synda suggested, but another possible issue may be the varieties of Daffodils. Some varieties perform better in the south than others; could be varieties that require a longer/colder winter are what you've got. Brent&Becky's catalogs give suggestions for the best performers for southern gardens.

Another possibility. If the still green foliage was cut down after the blooms faded in previous years you wouldn't get flowers.

I had the same problem last spring, and after asking around, I decided to try a solution that several people had mentioned. I applied a bulb fertilizer last April, and I'm waiting to see if this year's daffs bloom as promised. It's not a quick solution, but hopefully it will work. They're just starting to peek through the mulch now.

They tend to dig themselves deeper in the soil a bit every year. Dig up and replant after about 3 years. Separate the babies too.

I think Joy has the logical answer. After narcissus bloom, the leaves must be left until they yellow, which means not cutting them back until mid June for me to energize the bulb so it will bloom the following year. I have clumps that are huge and never have been dug up in 25 years, but I have sandy soil. Good luck. Patti

I'm wondering too? Could it be that they aren't getting enough winter chill in your Zone 9 garden?
I think I remember reading that the higher zones have to dig up their daffodils and tulips every fall and put them in their freezer or fridge (can't remember which?) for so many weeks (?) in the winter to give them the winter chill they need. They then replant them in late winter. Or they just treat them as annuals and buy pre-chilled bulbs every year. You might want to ask others who live in your zone.

Joy

I found this very informative article on growing daffodils in zone 9+.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4575290_grow-daffodils-hot-climates.html

I think it may answer your question.

Joy

This message was edited Mar 21, 2009 12:50 PM

Thank you very much for your many replys. I'm planning to dig out the bulbsin November, put them in the refrigerator for two months and replant them after chilling them.