Our Top 10 Daffodils

With their yellow flowers, daffodils truly bring spring to your garden. Who isn’t cheered up by these cheerful bloomers? Every year, we look forward to their distinctive trumpet-shaped flowers. There are countless varieties and cultivars—from the classic large yellow daffodil to delicate white daffodils, mini daffodils, and even two-tone daffodils. We’d love to share our favorite daffodil varieties with you, along with tips on how to plant and care for them. That way, you can easily order the right bulbs for your garden.

What types of daffodils are there?

There are more than 25,000 different cultivars of daffodils (Narcissus) and at least 13 different groups of daffodils. The most important of these groups are trumpet daffodils (such as Dutch Master), large-crowned daffodils (Ice Follies), small-crowned daffodils (Little Gem), double daffodils (Tahiti), Cyclamineus daffodils (Tête à Tête), and Poeticus daffodils (Actaea).

So there’s always a daffodil for your garden! Even if you don’t like bright yellow daffodils…

Where is the best place to plant daffodils?

Daffodils are best planted in full sun or partial shade. The soil should preferably be moist but well-drained. Especially in winter, the soil should not remain wet for too long. Nutrient-rich soil is also desirable. Daffodils grow well under deciduous trees, shrubs, or hedges, as long as they get enough sun. A mix of daffodils planted naturally throughout the landscape will quickly result in a cheerful early spring flower garden.

The Best Daffodil Varieties: Our Top 10!

Are you also curious about the best daffodils? We'd love to tell you about our favorite daffodils.

1. Dutch Master Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Dutch Master’ is a classic and timeless daffodil, with its characteristic yellow, trumpet-shaped flowers. Dutch Master produces strikingly large flowers and blooms early, around March–April. The flower color ranges from bright yellow to golden yellow. It grows to a height of about 40–50 cm.

2. Narcis Ice Follies

Narcissus ‘Ice Follies’ is also a large-flowered daffodil, but its flowers are white. The color of the trumpet ranges from creamy white to pale yellow. A beautiful (and slightly more subtle) daffodil to behold! It grows to about 40–45 cm tall. As it blooms, the yellow color gradually fades, and the flower turns almost entirely white.

3. Mount Hood Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Mount Hood’ is an all-white daffodil that may have a slightly creamy-yellow hue when it first opens. The flower quickly turns pure white. This white daffodil is slightly shorter, growing to about 40 cm. It blooms from late March or early April.

4. Tête à Tête Daffodil

Narcissus Tête à Tête is the most popular daffodil, ideal for planting in large numbers. It is a small-crowned daffodil that blooms profusely and is very hardy. It stays nice and low, growing to about 15–20 cm, and blooms from March through April with small yellow flowers. It’s also often displayed indoors. Looks beautiful paired with grape hyacinths, for example.

5. February Gold Daffodil

Narcissus ‘February Gold’ closely resembles Tête à Tête, but blooms earlier. It begins blooming as early as February–March, making it one of the earliest-blooming varieties. The bright yellow petals are slightly tilted backward. It often grows slightly taller than Tête à Tête, reaching about 20–30 cm.

6. Thalia Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Thalia’ is an all-white, low-growing daffodil with smaller flowers. This daffodil produces multiple flowers on a single stem. It grows to about 20–30 cm tall and blooms in March–April. It looks beautiful in large groups and when planted to grow wild.

7. Daffodil Actaea

Narcissus ‘Actaea’ is a unique daffodil that blooms with white flowers featuring a small yellow-orange trumpet. An orange-red ring is visible around the trumpet. Many Narcissus poeticus (which includes Actaea) have a strong but delightful fragrance. It blooms in May and grows to about 40 cm tall.

8. Jetfire Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Jetfire’ is a brightly colored small-crowned daffodil with bright yellow flowers and a vibrant orange trumpet. It blooms profusely around March and April and remains fairly short, growing to about 20 cm. This makes this daffodil ideal for pots and containers. It always stands out nicely.

9. Pink Charm Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Pink Charm’ is a unique variety among daffodils. This daffodil blooms with white flowers featuring a pink to salmon-pink trumpet. It blooms from March through April. It grows to a height of about 40–45 cm. Narcissus ‘Salmone’ often has a slightly paler pink trumpet.

10. Cheerfulness Daffodil

Narcissus ‘Cheerfulness’ is quite unique, but definitely worth it. This daffodil has a double flower: white on the outside and yellow on the inside. Cheerfulness also produces multiple flowers on a single stem. You’d hardly recognize them as daffodils. It blooms around April and grows to about 35 cm tall.

Tips for Daffodils

• Plant daffodils from September through November in a sunny spot that gets at least 4–6 hours of direct sunlight (during flowering), at a depth of about 2–3 times the depth of the bulb—approximately 10–15 cm deep.

• Daffodils look best when planted in clusters or rows. That way, they make an even bigger impact in your garden.

• Remove the spent flowers and let the foliage die back naturally. This ensures that as much energy as possible goes to the bulb, so it can grow and bloom well again next year.

• Smaller daffodil varieties pair beautifully with grape hyacinths, star hyacinths, or anemones.

• Large-flowered daffodils pair beautifully with early tulips and hyacinths.

• A spring border with (many) different types of daffodils is also a sight to behold!