Review of Spring 2004
by Loretta Aaron
The spring of 2004 will long be remembered by metro gardeners and those over the state.
Most years, when the buds show pink on the Magnolia soulangiana, an Artic blast arrives and the tree does not have its season in the sun. All of the flowering trees and shrubs went through the season without a frost or freeze. A rare occurrence in Oklahoma.
The spring flower show that featured Narcissus, -daffodils, was an educational event. Due to the perfect weather, the daffodils were perfection.
Not all daffodils acclimate to our erratic weather. I have been growing daffodils for many years, and make notes of those that perform well year after year. If the cultivar is still growing well after three years, and has the same substance and form, it is usually a keeper. If not, it is thrown in the trash can.
Many years ago, when I was managing a small garden shop, the salesman from Holland would call on us in the spring to take an order for fall delivery. This was in the mid 1960’s. The salesman told of a daffodil he thought was one of the best to come out of Holland in years. This was ‘Dutch Master’. I ordered 100 for the shop, and planted six of them in my garden. ‘Dutch Master’ is still blooming well, and is of show quality. Some years it will measure trumpet, but usually large cup. Bloom is mid - season. I have noticed that it is still listed in several mail order firms.
Daffodils should be grown in full sun with good drainage. They will tolerate light shade.
After bloom is over, allow the foliage to remain. The foliage is necessary to mature the bulb for another year of bloom.
I grow a few Dianthus plants near the maturing foliage, and this will add color in the area. I usually work a little 10-20-10 fertilizer around the maturing foliage.
The ones listed below have been growing in my collection at least three years and some as long as twenty years.
Class 1 – Trumpet type
‘Jules Verne’, ‘Bravoure’, ‘Breck’s Colossal’
Class 2- Large Cup
(There are many good ones in this class and the one’s listed have been great ones.)
‘Ice Follies’, ‘Rosy Wonder’, ‘Fortissimo’, ‘Dutch Master’, ‘Salome’, ‘Fortune’, ‘Ad Rem’, ‘Johann Strauss’, ‘Mysterious’, ‘Holland Sensation’, ‘Prof. Einstein’
Class 3- Small Cup (I am not presently growing any in this class as I prefer the more showy ones.)
Class 4- Double
(All the double ones are beautiful. My experience has been that they do not return after the third year. ‘Tahiti’ is one of my favorites, but I have to replace it every few years.)
‘Replete’ (This one does return and it is a large white with a pink center.)
Class 5- Triandus
‘Lemon Drops’, ‘Stint’
Class 6- Cyclamineous
‘Peeping Tom’, ‘Jetfire’, ‘Phalanope’
Class 7- Jonquilla
‘Eland’, ‘Stroke’
Class 8- Tazetta
‘Winston Churchill’, ‘Geranium’
Class 9 & 10- (I do not grow any of these)
Class 11- Split Corona
(This group is among my favorite. They retain the same good substance year after year. The first one I grew was ‘Mol’s Hobby’. That was over twenty years ago and is still a stand-out in my collection.)
‘Mol’s Hobby’, ‘Cassata’, ‘Mondragon’, ‘ Tricolet’, ‘Palmares’, ‘Colbanc’
The variety, ‘Wild Carnival’ has been in my collection two years and has still not stood the test of time. In it’s second year it is spectacular. It has a large red – orange flat cup and deep yellow perianth.