Seeds can go completely dormant in storage but a bulb is still biologically active, gradually consuming its stored energy. Bulbs can last a surprisingly long time but they cannot skip a year. The longer it is in storage, the less energy will be left in it. (Occasionally, people will say something like an oriental lily or cyclamen skipped an entire year and came up 2 years after it was planted. This always happens when they are planted in the ground - never in storage - and it's very unusual.) IF the ground is already frozen solid where you are, you can refrigerate the bulbs and plant them in early spring as soon as it is possible to dig. Chances are the blooms will be distorted somewhat in the first year but if they are capable of naturalizing they will look better the second year.

We have a few daffs that grow next to the driveway (they were there before we moved in). They look rather awkward where they are in comparison to the rest of the yard. I keep meaning to transplant them to the lily garden, but just haven't gotten around to it yet. My sweetie can't stand all of the weed-eating he has to do around my flower beds and constantly complains. Whenever he feels most resentful, he takes his revenge out on these daffodils and mows over them. I allow him to gloat in his bravado because it keeps him away from the rest of my flowers! Much to his chagrin, they always come right back in full force, it seems, in just a few weeks (their way of sticking their tongue out at him)! Tee! Hee! Come to think of it...maybe I won't transplant them! They are my saving grace by keeping my SO occupied and away from my other beauties! Shannon

First, most bulbs, including daffodils, break dormancy in the fall and start to put out roots. If you haven't already, you should plant all the bulbs you have now, as they will develop an extensive root system until the ground freezes. Depending on the variety of daff, most bulbs starting at around 10-12cm (1.25inches) in circumference will bloom the next year if handled properly over the summer. Some smaller bulbs will also bloom, but not reliably and with smaller flowers. I don't know too much about how daffodil bulbs divide; in tulips, the main bulb shrivels up after blooming, and the bulbs that are left when the leaves die back come from the small protobulbs you see on the sides and bottoms of tulip bulbs when you buy them. I believe daffs are different, i.e., more like amaryllis bulbs, where the blooming bulb doesn't shrivel up and die. I agree that you should be careful breaking up daughterbulbs attached to a larger bulb. If you have to separate, do it when you dig them up, dust with sulphur, and leave them in a dry place for several days to allow the broken tissue to heal and dry. If you need to store them over the summer, keep them dry and at room temperature. Plant them around the first frost.

I have ordered bulbs from VE, Scheepers and Bluestone. The first two have excellent quality and delivery times and you pay for what you get. They run out early. When I got my first Colorblends catalogue a couple of years ago I was critical of it. It looked like so much marketing to me. It seemed to me they were doing the work that garderners usually do: combining different varieties and selling them as "package" for impact. That's still true, but I still ordered some individual items, not combos. These were the biggest damn bulbs I've ever seen. Beautiful and healthy. And they arrived in 2 days....from the date of ordering. They are not more expensive than Scheepers and VE. They don't have the variety, but if they have what you want I suggest you give them a try.