More Blooms for Winter:

Daffodils (and tazettas/jonquils) can be forced to bloom early as long as the bulbs have had enough cooling time. We have to convince them they’ve experienced a winter before they will grow and produce a healthy flower. Bulbs that are short on cooling may result in shorter stems or no flowers at all.

Daffodil Forcing Guide:

Forcing Daffodils in Soil:

We force our daffodil bulbs with water in hydroponic trays (offered in our wholesale shop) or in 50-cell deep root trainers with nothing more than a little soilless mix and regular watering. We plant daffodils in regular, weekly successions during the winter months.

Forcing Daffodils Hydroponically:

For hydroponic growing, we add 2mL of Hydroguard to the water each week from the time we start a 2-week cool rooting period into the warmer growing phase at 60 to 65F. The growing phase is fast, lasting just 9-14 days! Shade can be used to help elongate stems. Some growers force daffodils below greenhouse tables while other crops are flowering above (like tulips).

*Daffodils in a hydroponic forcing tray.*

Cooling Requirements for Daffodil Forcing:

Daffodils, like many bulbs, must receive enough cooling weeks to allow for proper blooming. Some exceptions to this rule are paperwhite narcissus. They do not require a cold period to bloom for us, because they are typically grown in the Southern Hemisphere and have had cooling time before they get to growers in North America.

Artificial Cooling:

Cooling weeks can be provided artificially through refrigeration at 50°F (9°C) in place of a natural winter in the ground. Try to keep the relative humidity below 75% to avoid early rooting. If the temperature is colder during the cooling weeks period, you may see shorter stems. Most daffodils require 15-18 weeks of cooling time before they can properly grow and bloom. Once they’re ready to grow, they often take less than 2 weeks to bloom in a grow space at 60°F.

Field Planting Daffodils After Forcing:

Good news! When you’re done forcing daffodil bulbs, you can plant them out in your gardens or field for flowers that bloom on the natural cycle the following year. and then they will naturalize provided they have healthy growing conditions. We force new varieties each winter and then add them to our field plantings. This way, we always have some winter daffodils and some new spring flowers for customers to enjoy, too.

Counting Cooling Weeks:

We have our suppliers in The Netherlands begin the cooling process when the bulbs are loaded into their shipping containers. By the time they arrive here, they’ve already received 2 weeks of cooling. We continue to cool the bulbs at 50°F until we ship them to our wholesale buyers, which means that growers can “count” all the pre-cooling weeks that have already been achieved towards the bulbs’ “winter” (cooling weeks requirement) if they are planning to use the bulbs for winter forcing. And- if not- the bulbs can still be planted into the field in the fall in spite of the jump start we gave them with a few cooling weeks.

Diversify Winter Cut Flower Offerings:

Forcing daffodils is a great way to bring some cheer to your winter cut flower offerings. If you have already been doing some tulip forcing, we think you’ll find that daffodils are even easier to add to your program, and they can bring some interest to your bouquets.

Conversely— if you’re brand new to bulb forcing, daffodils are a lower risk crop to begin with. If things don’t work out just right for you the first time, you still have the opportunity to plant your bulbs into the field in the spring. They’ll bloom for you the following season.

Have a question? Let us know in a comment below. An Ampersand team member will be in touch with you soon.

Cheers!

-The Team at Ampersand Bulb Co.

How to Force Daffodils