Daffodils & Deer Resistance

One thing that always comes to mind with the recent flash of cooler weather is Spring! Wait, what?? Am I skipping winter? Mentally yes, I love fall, but winter…. not so much. The nicest thing about winter is that it leads to Spring. The first colours in Spring make all the cold temperatures worth it. A standard favourite in every garden is the classic Daffodil, a perennial favourite it rewards the garden with one of the first pops of colour. With approximately 50 species of these striking flowers there are many great options to choose from. Some species grow larger than others ranging from 6” to 30” tall. One of the larger varieties is a King Alfred Daffodil, one we’d like to review in this week’s blog.

This stunning plant rises 16-22” tall and blooms early in the season at the mid-end of April. The King Alfred features pointed, bright yellow petals with slight twists at the tips and a yellow trumpet. One of it’s most attractive features is how much deers hate it! It’s frustrating to find your labours in tatters after a visit from our fawn friends. All daffodils are actually abhorrent to animal species and would eat them only if lead to the verge of starvation.

This brings to light an interesting question, what makes the plant deer resistant? The same thing that makes them disgusting to a whole host of garden pests. They contain a bitter, poisonous substance called lycorine that no mammal will eat. They can smell it before even taking a bite so can a strategically planted grouping can assist with whole garden protection.

Consider planting these beauties this fall season to enjoy a spectacular result in Spring!