Strongly fragrant and generous with its blooms, Martinette is a tazetta registered in 1985 in Cornwall, England. Each 14-16″ stem carries a cluster of 4-6 lemon-yellow flowers with ribbed, bright carrot-orange cups, and bulbs often send up more than one stem. A great cut flower that’s drought tolerant and a good performer in the South.
Blooms: Each stem carries a cluster of 4-6 lemon-yellow flowers with small, ribbed carrot-orange cups. It blooms early to mid-spring (March-April in the South) on 14-16" stems and is hardy in zones 3-9. It also forces well indoors for winter blooms.
Plant: Plant the bulb like most daffodils in 6+ hours of winter sun, well-drained soil, avoid standing water, and avoiding too much competition. Plant the bulbs about 2-3 times the size of the bulb (so if the bulb is 1 inch long, plant it 2-3 inches deep). If you are farther north and get very cold during the winter, you may want to plant it about 4-6 inches deep. Space the holes about 3-6 inches apart, and for a more natural looking display, consider planting 2-3 bulbs in each hole.
Landscaping Tip: Narcissus bloom at different times so as one daffodil is ending its bloom time another is just beginning. We like to say that "there is a bulb that blooms every week of the year in warmer climates." Your garden can have consistent flowers that you can enjoy inside or outside for months and carry you all the way from February through April.
Fragrance: Martinette is strongly fragrant with a sweet tazetta perfume. A few stems will scent a whole room, and the fragrance draws pollinators to the garden.
Animals: Like other daffodil bulbs, critters, including deer and gophers, leave this bulb alone. However, bees, butterflies, and other pollinators are attracted to the blooms and sweet-smelling flowers. There are so many blooms on each stalk that they don't have to fight over each flower.