A host of golden daffodils

Remember when I wrote about discovering all the kinds of oak trees that Ed and I found growing around our farm? Well, the same thing has happened with this spring's daffodils. I never paid much attention to the variety of narcissus that pop up every spring.

Silly me. I had no idea that there are between 40 and 200 different daffodil species, subspecies or varieties of species and more than 25,000 registered cultivars.

When I saw that more rain was expected for today, I went out yesterday and picked

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Most were ones that the kids helped me plant even before the house was built. Five years ago, I ordered 200 bulbs from White Flower Farm, but didn't think to save the order form, so I don't really know the names of what I have.

Once back in my kitchen, I separated my bouquet by type.

And then I put them into vases and lined them up, according to height. This pleased me greatly.

Then I checked the White Flower Farm website and tried to figure out the names of each flower. I suspect that some of the ones I purchased five years ago are no longer listed. So I'm not 100 percent sure that I've named them properly. But here's my best guesses...

Narcissus Delnashaugh (double daffodil)

Narcissus English Style (double daffodil)

Narcissus Acropolis (double daffodil)

Narcissus Minnow (tazetta daffodil)

Minature White Tete-a-Tete

Narcissus British Gamble (trumpet daffodil)

Narcissus Sir Winston Churchill (double daffodil)

I'm hoping my gardening friends – I'm talking to you: Kathy and Lynn – will set me straight if I've got these wrongly identified.

In the meantime, the perfume from these bouquets is filling the room and I'm loving it.

___________

Another interesting tidbit that I learned in my research:

Narcissus is the Latin or botanical name for all daffodils. So daffodil is the common name for all members of the genus Narcissus. And to confuse you further...

In some parts of the country any daffodil is called a jonquil. The term jonquil actually refers to one specific type of daffodil, the Narcissus jonquilla. Jonquils tend to have clusters of several flowers, instead of just one bloom, and have a strong scent. (See Sir Winston Churchill above.)

And that, my friends, is your botanical lesson for the day. You are dismissed!