It's
icy-cold, the fire is lit, the rugs piled on.
Outside, the
first of the winter bulbs opens its sweet petals: a white hoop petticoat daffodil
that I've grown from seed. I squint at my old label: it's from Alpine Garden
Society seed, free (I'm a member), rare; sown in 2011, it's only taken 5 years
to flower and I have 3 pure white blooms already! Labelled Narcissus bulbocodium ssp. graellsii
which is often lemon or cream, mine are surprisingly uniform in the pristine snowy
colour. Or...is it (I squint harder) `Narcissus
aff [looks like] bulbocodium ssp. graellsii? So what is it and...what's
in a name? I really don't mind. As the perennials slow down for winter and the
garden starts to look quiet, I'm just feeling pretty darn pleased.
Jill Weatherhead is a horticulturist, writer, garden
designer and principal at Jill Weatherhead Garden Design who lives in
the Dandenong Ranges east of Melbourne, and works throughout Victoria (www.jillweatherheadgardendesign.com.au)
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