Tazetta Daffodils
37 Cultivars Listed
The least cold-loving of all daffodils, Tazettas are the most floriferous of the genus , 3 to 20 florets per scape with a sweet, complex, layered perfume. Tazetta comes from the Italian describing the florets, ‘Tazze e piattini’ , yes – cups and saucers.
Tazettas were the first daffodils to be grown in great numbers primarily by the Dutch and British , in the 19th century for the cut flower market. But overharvesting of wild stocks along with a series of very cold winters and World War 1 disrupted the floriculture and the market at the beginning of the 20th century.
Subsequent crosses of Tazettas with Poeticus led to a great number of hardier and larger cultivars known as Poetaz. In the late 19th Century and Early 20th century there was a robust market in the Eastern US for cut Tazettas.
Generally Tazettas are happiest in zone 6a through Southern 8a, Western 10, depending on the cultivar and environment. In warmer climates they will bloom from December through April. The Poetaz group being more hardy, overwintering into zone 5.
Paperwhites is a generic term for any tazetta that has a white perianth and a white corona.
8 W-O
Bringing more rock and roll glamour to the modern New Zealand garden party, Abraxis is a scented, broad petaled, and wavy tazetta hybrid dressed in white and orange. Early to arrive to the fete. From Grand Monarch.
8 Y-Y
Vivid two toned yellow offspring of Avalanche. You will need both hands and some toes to count the number of blooms on each scape. An ideal example of what makes Tazettas such great flowers in the garden and in the vase. Needs southern exposure and winter protection in Zone 6. A creation of the late Bill 'the Bulb Baron' Welch.
8 W-Y
Canaliculatus - An important Tazetta that is grown commercially in large numbers. A historic, an ADS Classic and an ADS miniature. On commercial acreage lists in Holland it is categorized as a species. Pollen and Pod fertile. We maintain a small stock that is hand harvested and graded apart from the large commercial growers. Floriferous, bright and fragrant. Mentioned as an "erratic and fussy bloomer"1 in Southern zones 8 and above.
1. Daffodils in American Gardens 1733-1940, Sara L. van Beck, 101
8 W-OOY
An Avalanche / Matador cross from the master of tazettas, Bill Welch. Most any narcissus centric superlatives apply to Mr Welch's tazetta seedlings : fragrant, substantial, robust, long-lasting, colorful. Be prepared to receive very large bulbs making very large plants each with multiple scapes.
"Bulbs, they light up your yard without electricity "
8 Y-O
Very floriferous and very tall yellow and orange Tazetta. A perfect thing, likely a Poetaz , from Bill Pannill. Fantastic imposing plant, olé.
8 Y-YYR
Towering over the tazetta bed every year is Chinita, an original poetaz with a very broad flowers and unusual clear primrose color. Pick it early to protect the cup from sunburn, the petals from blanching. Downright thrilling in the vase. Singular.
8 W-O
A historic poetaz, Early Spendour has ample wide petals and a brilliant over all coloration that sings in the sunlight. Easy to photograph, easy to fall in love with. ADS historic.
4 W-Y
Erlicheer is an older tazetta sport with bodacious double, strongly scented blooms. Excellent for forcing and for cut flowers. Erlicheer may struggle in Zone 6 even with some winter protection. Grows freely in the South. A singular daffodil. Classified as a double but we all know that it really behaves as a tazetta. Makes an unusually large bulb.
8 W-P
Unusual, unmistakeable and unforgettable Fencourt Jewel is a unique 21st century pink cupped tazetta. Floriferous : beauty and bounty from New Zealand. A truly grand flower. For us in zone 6b it is wonderfully persistent year over year. Worth every penny.
8 W-Y
No mean girls at this gathering, this early blooming tazetta from Bill Welch is friendly and free flowering, up to 14 blooms per scape. Girl's Night is another superior garden tazetta from the bulb barron, with a cup that is bright but not brassy.
8 W-O
Gloriosus is a floriferous and beautiful very old tazetta with strong orange colored cups and a classic strong, sweet, fragrance. Pollen and seed fertile Glorious is also self fertile and "seeds like crazy" . A thing of joy and glory forced in a pot or as a cut flower. Needs a winter blanket in northern zones. Not to be confused with the tazetta cultivar "Glorious".
8 W-Y
Grand Monarque is an old and important Tazetta, once grown in great numbers for the cut flower market, both in the US and the Netherlands. It has produced some remarkable seedlings establishing its reputation as a super parent. Plainly colored, Floriferous and fragrant. From the species N. tazetta subsp. lacticolor.
8 W-Y
A highly floriferous cross from avalanche, by Bill Welch. Large and vigorous grower with large flowers and lots of them; we average 17 per scape. Hilary is very fragrant, an improved cultivar all around.
8 W-Y
A substantial Australian Tazetta from the golden age of tazetta breeding. A cross of Grand Monarque and pseudo-narcissi, Killara is an ADS Historic.
8 G-G
Inheriting floriferousness from her mother and green color from her father Lima's Green Goddess is a fall blooming viridiflorus cross. These daffodils like to be high and dry in summer dormancy and will awake around October first. They go dormant in the late spring, and are somewhat cold hardy, but there are limits.
To read more about the genesis in modern narcissus viridiflorus breeding go HERE.
8 W-Y
L'innocence is a compact and floriferous tazetta, likely a poetaz, from a time when there was a lot of breeding going on to make tazettas more hardy. Richly colored, its compact size makes if excellent for pot culture or in the rockery where you don't want overly tall tazetta foliage crashing down on the little neighbors. An ADS historic.
8 W-WPP
We are pleased to list this miniature white pink cupped tazetta by Harold Koopowitz. Little Dianne is unique and feminine, full of color, fine form, detail and fragrance. Makes you loath to leave the ranch in springtime. Limited stock
8 W-O
A bright and early Tazetta from Bill Welch, Marisol is distinguished by its deeply lobed and frilled orange cups. Cute and detailed, smells good like a Tazetta should.
8 W-O
Corpulent and colorful, this daffodil is the first lady of the poetaz group. Martha Washington has large flowers, two or three per scape, that bring a shine and a sweet scent to the border. Makes a very flat flower in maturity. ADS Historic.
8 Y-O
Martinette is a Tazetta crossed with a species jonquil by Harry Tuggle. It is a vigorous grower and fragrant. Aside from Geranium it is the tazetta that I see most often on the commercial cut flower market.
8 W-Y
Bill Welch's take on daffodil Avalanche. There is an easily recognized perfection to Miss Meliss blooms, she is genuinely tall, strong, floriferous, and fragrant. A truly great cultivar.
8 Y-R
A Grant Mitsch bred Tazetta of great power and distinction. Bountifully floriferous, with sharp mucrons and rich colors. One of the Novelty Bird Series: Motmot is a tropical bird of the family Momotidae. Jonquil cross.
8 W-W
An abundance of broad, substantial, wavy and white flowers on a scape bring a spirit of opulence to the bed, bench, and bunch. Nickelodeon is a modern poetaz, from Grand Monarque, and from New Zealand too. A remarkable flower that we recommend without a moment's hesitation.
8 Y-Y
Vigorous and consistent, Pacific Coast is a modern tazetta that stands out from the rest. Easy and bright with lots of perfectly formed flowers. A sport of Minnow, Pacific Coast is tall but not rangy, better organized and more substantial. ADS Miniature.
