Some late daffodils

The striking large, brightly coloured flowers  of Narcissus nobilis are really something special, (With Primula ''Guinevere'.)

It hasn't been a great daffodil season here; the early ones were fine, but the main season never quite achieved its full potential due to the combination of very dry soil, sunshine and string winds, all tending to frizzle them up quite quickly. After recent rain, however, some late-flowering species and cultivars are looking good, and will carry the daffodil season on for another week so so.

Narcissus abscissus is not a spectacular plant; It was known to the Seventeenth century gardeners as the 'Clipt Trunk Daffodil' on account of its straight trumpet without a flare at the rim.

A tiny wild type N. poeticus, probably referable to N. radiiflorus: it could be useful to breeders of miniatures, but with no garden presence of its own. N. poeticus 'Recurvus' is also just opening.

The green eye of 'Cedar Hills', a lovely Grant Mitsch selection. This was picked several days ago to enjoy the flower unblemished indoors: its fellow buds in the garden have not yet opened. 

I lost the name of this very late reverse bicolor trumpet years ago (it came from Janis Ruksans), but I like its lateness and the gradual change in colour from cream to ivory then nearly white.