Once our daffodils start to go over, the temptation is to mow them off or neatly tie up the leaves. Yet these practices deprive the bulbs of the essential nutrients they need to enable the bulb to store up enough food to produce next year’s flowers.
However, deadheading your daffodils means that they don’t waste their effort in producing unwanted seeds so yet more food is available for the bulb.
Sam Youd, Head gardener at Tatton Gardens, shows us how it’s done.
Deadheading Your Daffodils Video
The tradition of neatly tying up the leaves after flowering or mowing off when they’re in a lawn prevents the plant from storing nutrients in the bulb to power next year’s growth.
If you combine deadheading with applying a good dose of low-nitrogen or general purpose fertiliser, you will ensure a marvellous display next year from the bulbs.
With daffodils in a lawn, try to avoid mowing them for as long as possible. The ideal is to mow when the daffodil’s foliage has died back.
If you do mow off as soon as they have flowered you will end up with blind plants (just foliage, no flower) next year.