How to Care for Miniature Daffodils

Prepare your planting site at least a month before you set your miniature daffodil bulbs out. Choose a fertile, well-draining spot in full sun.

Cultivate the soil to a depth of about 12 inches. Spread a 2-inch layer of peat moss or leaf mold over the bed. Add a 2-inch layer of well-rotted compost on top. Spade the amendments 10 to 12 inches into the soil. Your miniature daffodils will be here for years to come, so proper soil preparation now will feed them well in the future.

Plant the bulbs about six to eight weeks before the first predicted frost for your area, when the soil has cooled to around 60 degrees F. Plant them at least twice as deep as the bulb height with the pointed end up. Space the bulbs about 3 inches apart.

Water the miniature daffodil bed thoroughly to soak the soil immediately after planting. Keep the soil surface evenly moist but not soggy or wet through the fall.

Water the miniature daffodil bed thoroughly to soak the soil when the leaf tips emerge in early spring. Keep the soil surface evenly moist but not soggy or wet. Stop watering about four weeks after they bloom.

Feed the daffodils a 5-10-10 fertilizer when leaves emerge from the soil in the spring. Follow the packaging instructions carefully.

Feed the plants with a 0-0-10 fertilizer when they begin to bloom.

Dig the bulbs up after the leaves begin to turn yellow between late May and mid-June. Clip the foliage off with clean, sharp shears. Wash the bulbs and set them out to air dry in the shade for about a week.

Put the miniature daffodil bulbs in the leg of an old pair of pantyhose. Hang them up in a cool, well-ventilated spot out of direct sun where they won’t freeze until you’re ready to plant them in the fall.