Gardening newbie needs daffodil help

You should have left them in the ground until the leaves turned brown and then transplanted them.

Ask before action.

Hm. So does that mean it's too late to salvage them now? (Yes, I should have asked. I'm sorry.)

No, heel them in somewhere and keep them watered until the tops turn brown. Then move them to their permanent spot in the fall. Heeling in means digging a shallow trench, put the bulbs and roots in it and cover them with soil, water well. Leave the tops in the sun. It may take them a year or so to recover and bloom again, i.e., they may skip blooming next spring.

Great! Thank you.

Ooops... if you want to move a bulb that's still in leaf, I would have suggested digging their new home first, then lifting the entire clump and moving them directly to the new hole, then filling and keeping things watered (generally, bulbs don't like soggy soil, but they do like moderately moist). With luck, you won't disturb them so much that they dry off their leaves without making reserve photosynthate for next season.

Since you've already dug them, I'd transplant ASAP, and do a little coddling for awhile. Don't expect much in the way of flowering next spring, but maybe the spring after.

Kay

And when you transplant, make _sure_ that's where you want them to be. You will never get rid of them once they've settled in. I'd be surprised if they don't show up again where you originally found them, as well.

I have a patch from our house's previous owners that's in a really bad place. Dug up five pounds of bulbs and gave them away.

They were back again the next year.

--Nan