What to do with Daffodils when the flowers droop and die

[griffster]

Had some lovely daffodils in my garden this year but now the flowers are dying and the stems starting to droop. Should I cut them back, dig up the bulbs, or just let them die off?

[kellys_eye]

As I remember, you fold the remaining stems in half and secure with an elastic band. Apparently this helps them 'reproduce' and the following year you have an even bigger crop....

[dewaltdisney]

They will come up again next year just leave them alone. The bulb will lay dormant until it is ready to shoot again next spring. I have some that I mow over each year when they are finished and they have never failed yet.

DWD

[griffster]

Interesting tip that! Will do. I don't need to dig up the bulbs and let them dry out at any stage then?

[dave.m]

All along the grass verges around our village, the County Council came some years ago and dug a small trench about 6-9 inches deep and tipped in sacks full of daffy bulbs.
They just grow and flower every year with no maintenance.
Our local Parish Council employs an old codger who is called a 'lengthsman' who keeps all the highways and byeways clean and tidy. After the daffs have been and gone, he gets the mower out and cuts the grass on the verges along with any stems that are still sticking up. It never does them any harm and, as I said, they re-appear every spring to bring the first bit of colour to the countryside.

dave

[EJJ150847]

Leave them unless they are untidy, as the stalks die the energy goes back into the bulb.

Tie them if you want, I normally leave ours to die back naturally, those in the grass I mow around until I'm fed up with them.


John

[griffster]

Ok, thanks everyone. Think I'll tie them down to keep it tidy...and to know where they are of course so I don't dig them up and replace them with something else accidentally! lol

[thescruff]

Don't touch them until the sap returns to the bulbs.

[griffster]

How do I know that though? Shouldn't I tie them down for now?

[thescruff]

The vegetation dies off.

You can tie them down the same as onions if you wanted too, but I would let them seed and die. That way the bulbs grow and multiply.

They will grow again next year, whatever you do.