Daffodils & Narcissi
What are they?
Without a doubt, daffodils form an integral part of Scillonian culture. Growing these plants for bulbs and cut flowers is now, sadly, greatly on the decline as a way of life, but the result of many years of cultivation mean that stray daffodils remain a feature of the landscape. Identification of these plants is often very difficult and they can be virtually impossible to identify to cultivar. As such, detailed information on the plants found around the island is lacking. With this in mind, I have here provided identification notes for many of the main daffodil and narcissi species and hybrid groups, all of which have been grown on the islands at some point. Hopefully this will aid identification of plants in the future.
Amaryllis Family - Amaryllidaceae
Bunch-flowered Daffodil Narcissus tazettaIntroduced from mainland Europe. Flowers January to April. Flowers small, 3-8 per stem. Perianth tube 12-18mm. Tepals yellow or white, 8-22mm long; corona yellow or orange, 3-6mm long. Highly variable in appearance due to horticultural selection, but typically identified by its small, bunched flowers with very short corona.
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Head-to-head Daffodil Narcissus x cyclazetta
(Narcissus tazetta x N. cyclamineus). A hybrid of garden origin. Flowers February to April. Flowers small, 1-2 per stem. Perianth tube 10-13mm. Tepals yellow, 12-20mm long; corona yellow, usually a little darker than tepals, 11-17mm long. Usually found as the cultivar 'Tete-a-Tete' which has two flowers per stem (hence the name!), but plants have a habit of reverting to a single flower over time.
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Jonquil Narcissus jonquilla
Introduced from SW Europe and sometimes persisting from original plantings in churchyards and amenity areas. Flowers April to May. Flowers small, 1-5 per stem. Perianth tube 20-30mm. Tepals white, 10-15mm long; corona yellow, 2-5mm long. The photos show a particularly broad-tepalled cultivar called 'Sun Disc', but other forms are rather similar to Bunch-flowered Daffodil and may be difficult to tell from all-yellow forms of that species. The true species has narrowly cylindrical leaves, but some cultivars have more open leaves (perhaps suggesting a hybrid origin).
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Angel's-tears Daffodil Narcissus triandrus
Introduced from SW Europe and sometimes persisting from original plantings in churchyards and amenity areas. Flowers April. Flowers small, 1-3 per stem. Perianth tube 10-20mm. Tepals white to pale yellow, 10-25mm long, at first patent but becoming strongly reflexed; corona white to pale yellow, 5-25mm long. Leaves narrow, almost cylindrical, 1.5-3mm wide.
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Hoop-petticoat Daffodil Narcissus bulbocodium
Introduced from SW Europe and sometimes persisting from original plantings in churchyards and amenity areas. Flowers March-April. Flowers solitary. Perianth tube 4-25mm. Flowers cream or bright yellow, tepals reduced to narrow, linear segments and almost hidden behind the large corona.
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Rip van Winkle Daffodil Narcissus 'Rip van Winkle'
A multi-petalled plant of uncertain origin but seemingly first cultivated in Ireland. Flowers March. Flowers small, solitary, with many, narrow and twisted tepals. Generally considered likely to be a sport of Narcissus minor.
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Paper-white Daffodil Narcissus papyraceus
Introduced from mainland Europe. Flowers January to April. Flowers small, 3-20 per stem. Perianth tube 10-20mm. Tepals white, 8-18mm long; corona white, 3-4mm long. Flowers sometimes double.
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Pheasant's-eye Daffodil Narcissus poeticus
Introduced from mainland Europe. Flowers April to May. Flowers medium-sized, one per stem. Perianth tube 20-30mm. Tepals white, 15-25mm long, patent or sometimes a little reflexed; corona very short, yellow with a red-orange tip, 1-3.5mm long.
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Boutigny's Daffodil Narcissus x boutignyanus
(Narcissus poeticus x N. moschatus). A hybrid probably of garden origin but also known from the wild in Spain. Flowers March to April. Flowers medium-sized, one per stem. Perianth tube 20-25mm. Tepals white, 25-40mm long, patent; corona yellow or orange-yellow, 12-15mm long.
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Nonesuch Daffodil Narcissus x incomparabilis
(Narcissus poeticus x N. pseudonarcissus). A hybrid of garden origin but also known from the wild in Spain. Flowers March to April. Flowers medium-sized, one per stem. Perianth tube 20-25mm. Tepals light yellow, 25-30mm long, patent; corona deep yellow or orange-yellow, 12-22mm long.
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Common Daffodil Narcissus pseudonarcissus ssp. pseudonarcissus
Probably native in the UK, but its status is impossible to assess as it has been in cultivation since at least medieval times. Flowers Febuary to April. Flowers large, one per stem. Perianth tube 15-22mm. Tepals pale yellow, 20-40mm long, usually tilted forward but sometimes eventually patent when fully mature; corona yellow, darker than tepals 20-35mm long. The true species is typically shorter-stemmed and a little smaller flowered than many of the hybrids that have been bred from it and are commonly planted into the landscape.
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Common Daffodil Hybrids Narcissus pseudonarcissus
This group covers a multitude of hybrids with Common Daffodil and closely related species, or selected strains. These tend to be the 'big and blousy', brilliant yellow plants seen in great abundance and whose stems are often too weak to support the large flowers, causing them to easily bend over. Within this group there are also a number of white forms as well as double varieties.
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Reflexed Daffodil Narcissus x monochromus
(Narcissus pseudonarcissus x N. cyclamineus). A hybrid of garden origin. Flowers February to March. Flowers medium-sized, one per stem. Perianth tube 10-15mm. Tepals yellow, 25-35mm long, clearly reflexed; corona yellow, typically a little darker than the tepals, 20-25mm long. Commonly grown as the cultivar 'February Gold'.
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Spanish Daffodil Narcissus hispanicus
Introduced from mainland Europe. Flowers March to May. Flowers large, one per stem. Perianth tube 18-20mm. Tepals yellow, 18-40mm long, more or less patent and usually twisted; corona yellow, the same colour as the tepals 40-45mm long. This species has been used a lot in the production of cultivated varieties and has parentage in many of the all yellow forms of large daffodils.
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