My Experiences with Some Newer Daffodils 
SHERMAN R. DUFFY, 111-. 
RESPONDING TO THE REQUEST OE GARDEN MAGAZINE READERS FOR A CRITICAL RECITAL OF EXPERIENCES 
WITH THE RARER 
1 A.M a firm believer in this “I-hear-you- 
calling-me” motif in gardening and here- 
with respond to the call of other Daffodil- 
ists as recently voiced in The Garden 
Magazine. E.\changes of experiences and 
ideas help a lot. Therefore I am glad to give 
such experiences as I have had with the newer 
Daffodils, hoping that they may prove of some 
value to somebody. And moreover the plant- 
ing season is at hand! 
In sounding a new trumpet, I toot loudest 
for Olympia. I also sound the hewgag and 
heat the tomtom for this particular Daffodil. 
I might even attempt the ukulele if forced to it, 
for Olympia strikes me as the showiest and 
most impressive of the newer trumpet Daffo- 
dils suitable for garden purposes that I have 
encountered. 
It is an enormous blossom — although size is 
by no means a criterion of value or beauty. In 
coloring it is much on the order of Emperor but 
a little brighter both in perianth and trumpet 
and it makes the finest mass planting of any 
trumpet Daffodil I know of and I have always 
maintained that the old Emperor would stand 
a lot of beating for gardening utility. I believe 
Olympia is the main competitor. It is such a 
majestic upstanding Daffodil, yet not lacking 
in grace as is Glory of Leyden nor giving the 
fatted beef impression of Van Waveren’s 
Giant. It is one of the few giant trumpets 
that may be purchased at a reasonable price. 
It increases freely and is a sturdy, vigorous 
grower. What more in a garden Daffodil 
could the heart desire' 
Faultlessly beautiful, icily regular, but not 
splendidly null are Monarch and Lord Rob- 
erts. Lord Roberts is a good sized Daffodil of 
bright 3'ellow perianth and frilled and flaring 
trumpet. It is about half to a quarter of an 
inch larger than Emperor, but its chief claim 
to fame is its disgusting regularity. It is so 
regular it looks as : uspicious as a man with no 
bad habits. It looks artificial, as if it might 
have been stamped with a die. However, it 
is a very beautiful Daffodil but I should prefer 
others if limited to a choice. (Lord Roberts re- 
tails in the neighborhood of sixty to seventy- 
five cents per bulb. Olympia can be purchased 
somewhere between three dollars and two and 
Victoria (bicolor). One of the best all around newcomers. 
Vigorous and not high priced 
NOVELTIES— PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS 
a half per dozen, quotations now being lower 
than for the last two years). 
Lord Roberts is a particularly valuable ad- 
dition in that it gives a bright golden yellow 
midseason Daffodil. It is a flower of fine sub- 
stance and stands up well. If only it were not 
so faultless I should consider it almost an ideal 
Daffodil. 
Monarch is a magnificent rich yellow trum- 
pet. It suffers, too, from too much perfection 
of form but is not so regularly cut as Lord 
Roberts. It is one of the class of Daffodils 
catalogue writers call “very refined.” It is a 
very fine Daffodil and seems to be a sturdy 
garden plant. It is not so deep a yellow as 
Lord Roberts, and I like it better. 
THE BICOLOR TRUMPETS 
Passing from the yellow to the bicolor 
trumpets, Jf'eardale Perfection I still regard as 
the finest of the paler type of any I have 
tried. It is a midseason Daffodil and a 
beauty. It i.s too expensive for large masses 
and the same may be said of another gem, 
Duke of Bedford, an early bicolor. It is al- 
most identical with the old-fashioned tuber- 
cular and anaemic Horsfieldi in color but 
almost twice its size. It is worth a place in 
any collection. 
Glory of Noordcvij': is a Dutch Daffodil with 
the same vigor of growth as Van W’averen’s 
Giant and other huge bulbs of Holland origin. 
It is not as pure in color as many of the bi- 
colors, there being a yellowish stripe down the 
perianth segments. It is very much like 
Empress in coloring but very much larger 
both in flower and leaf. It is well worth grow- 
ing and seems a good doer. 
Taken by and large, the one bicolor Daffodil 
for large, imposing masses (the only real way 
to grow Daffodils), is Fictoria. It has every 
good quality and is cheap. Its white is a pure 
white, its yellow is a golden yellow, it has size, 
form, substance and sturdiness and healthiness 
of growth. While it does not assume the 
majestic proportions of Glory of Noordwijk, it 
IS a simple matter to have it three and one half 
to four inches in diameter which is plenty big 
enough for any Daffodil. The flaring, well 
frilled trumpet is particularly fine. I have 
Duke of Bedford. Similar to the old, weak growing Hors- 
fieldi, but twice the size and quite strong 
FOR THE PLANTER 
discarded Empress in favor of Victoria, as it is 
a better all around garden bulb. 
THE INCOMPARABILIS FAMILY 
.Among the incomparabilis (medium cup) 
section. Commodore makes a decided hit with 
me. A bed of Commodore is a beautiful gar- 
den feature. It stands the test of outdoor 
culture, is vigorous and increases well. It is a 
big pale yellow flower with a wide golden crown 
edged with orange. The perianth segments 
are wide and overlapping making a fairly cir- 
cular flower. Too often in this section the 
beauty of the cup is offset by thin ragged per- 
ianth divisions which wither while the cup i.s 
still perfect. Commodore is a durable flower. 
A striking beauty is Torch, a tall flaming 
pennant among the short cup (or saucer) Nar- 
cissus. It is a very large flower. The per- 
ianth divisions are twisted but, unlike many 
Narcissus with this style of perianth, they are 
durable and very beautiful. The cup is the 
main feature. It is a rich orange red, large, 
wide and deep for this section. It attracts the 
eye at once. It seems to be an excellent 
grower although I have had it onl}' one year. 
A sturdy leaf growth, however, ma\’ be taken 
as an indication of health. 
I never could throw quite as many spasms 
over Lady Margaret Boscawen as many 
Daffodilists do, but Brigadier arouses real en- 
thusiasm. It is a mild form of Lady Margaret 
Boscawen and can be secured at a moderate 
enough price to make a showing. It is a bi- 
color Sir M'atkin but does not give the impres- 
sion of trying to be a trumpet and just falling 
short as do Sir Watkin and Lady Margaret. 
It has a substantial overlapping white perianth 
and a wide deep yellow crown. 
THE GROWING LIST OF BARRIIS ' 
The barred list of Barrii grows apace and the 
accepted list still remains comparatively small. 
It is unfortunately true that this section in a 
great many cases does not adapt itself to .Amer- 
ican gardening conditions. .As an English 
writer was moved to remark concerning one of 
this class, “It is a bit squiffy.” I am not al- 
together certain what squiffy is, but ap- 
parently that’s what ails them. 
Lord Roberts. Larger than Emperor and remarkably reg- 
ular in form and uniform appearance 
.50 
