03.30.11
English Spring Came Too Early For Daffodils
A field of daffodils in Cornwall, England. From Wikipedia
According to the BBC and various other news sources, daffodils in western England, East Anglia, and Scotland are blooming too early. Growers are having a difficult time getting enough people to come and pick the flowers, thus leaving many of the daffodils to go to waste.
Following a cold winter in the United Kingdom, warm, wet weather has allowed the daffodils to peak long before Easter, the most popular time for daffodil purchases (along with Mother’s Day, which is in early April this year in the UK). Easter comes three weeks later this year than last year, and the daffodils are expected to be past their prime by then.
The UK grows over 25,000 varieties of daffodils, exporting many of them to countries such as Denmark, Germany, Holland, and Sweden. The UK produces half of the world’s daffodil bulbs and exports 10,000 tons of daffodil bulbs each year.
The UK Met Office is forecasting high temperatures across England today from about 10 to 13 °C (50 to 55 °F), tomorrow 12 to 17 °C (54 to 63 °F), Friday 12 to 18 °C (54 to 64 °F), and Saturday 13 to 20 °C (55 to 68 °F).