I LOVE Old House Gardens (www.oldhousegardens.com) for their unique antique varieties, as well as Van Engelen/John Scheepers, Colorblends and Brent and Becky's Bulbs. If you want something really unique, try Grant Mitsch in Oregon.

I'd suggest you only take one or two bulbs of the daffs in the parking lot so that it doesn't leave a big gaping hole, and wait until the foliage is starting to die back. A LITTLE thinning will be good for the bulbs by the deli and yours will multiply eventually.

Lisa

Thanks for answering this Lisa. I looked at Old house gardens, and they do have some beautiful varieties. I may have to treat myself this fall and buy some for myself. I've purchased tulips from colorblends and will try them for daff's too. I've also ordered from Brent & Beckys and john scheepers, but lilys not daff's. Maybe I will just thin the daff's I saw by the deli instead of digging the whole 2-3 clumps up.

I ordered over 400 daffodils from Scheepers. Their size and quality can't be beat (IMHO). Every bulb I planted came up and about 90% of the bulbs grew 2+ flowers. Mount Hood, King Alfred, Tahiti, and Arkle.

Hi Aurora - thanks for the info on Scheepers. They have a great selection. And I love the ones you have, especially Mt. Hood

I always buy mine at Home depot in fall, and the selection and quality is fine.

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Maureen- you should try species tulips instead of the hybrids. Squirrels don't bother them and mine come back. I have:
T. praestans unicum- variegated foliage and gorgeous red blooms;
T. batalinii Red Gem- cute little red tulips;
T. batalinii Bright Gem- cute yellow-orange, multiplying better than Red Gem;
T. Little Beauty- cute little magenta blooms with blue centers

and I'm thinking of ordering some more soon.

I like the fancy daffs like the doubles, flat cups, and butterfly forms. They seem to repeat OK for me. I also like fragrant ones like Quail, Geranium, and Pheasant's Eye. I buy from Brent and Becky's (10% off if ordered by June 30, today), MacClure and Zimmerman's, and Scheepers. I also get some at season's end from local nurseries and stores on clearance, and they bloom even when planted late.

The Costco bulbs' quality is very uneven. The good thing - you can return them easily if you don't like them.

hemnancy, for how many years do your fancy duffies return? I am going to order some of these for the first time this year. Thanks in advance for any info.

About stealing... You guys are amazing! My DH calls me criminal because of my periodic desire to get some cutting of the plant I like from the public beds...

Alina- I have a lot of smaller daffs like Thalia, Pheasant's Eye, Hawera, Minnow, Cheerfulness, that are 5-6 years old, but started buying bigger ones more recently. Delibes, Flower Record, Wild Carnival, Tahiti, and Golden Ducat are about 2 years old and repeated. Quail and Geranium smell good and are great daffs, also 2 yrs old. Some may not have come back this year, like Spellbinder, Fragrant Rose, and Mount Hood, I'll have to see if they bloom next year. Someone should have had some of the fancy ones longer than me. I'm going to get Obdam this year, and some Jonquilla for fragrance. I also want some more species tulips and some kind of lilies, I'm torn between Asiatics, LA Hybrids, and Orienpets.

Hemnancy, thanks for the answer! Asiatic and Orienpets bloom at different time, maybe you should get both?

irish_rose_grower, thanks for the topic! I got some useful info from it. Good luck with your new duffies!
Alina.