In a message dated 3/11/05 9:22:57 AM Pacific Standard Time, janemcgary@earthlink.net writes: > Many, though not all, Narcissus species seem to be blooming on shorter > stems than usual. Is this caused by the warm, sunny conditions? Some > Fritillaria species are also shorter than usual, particularly F. affinis, > but some (particularly the Greek island species) are of normal height. Jane ~ A quick answer? Yes. Daffodils are fairly primitive plants with unbranched root systems. They grow best in cool temps with ample water and overcast to lightly broken cloud cover. The roots are unable to take up enough water fast enough to replace that which is transpired during warm, sunny, dry weather, e.g., OR in 2005. Here in the heat of Spring in Northern CA (it was 89 deg F. today in the town near Santa Rosa where we live!) I can't water potted daffodils enough. In this heat the leaves simply collapse but overnight they will straigten up. Blue ribbon show-quality bloom is not possible under such conditions. I will be arriving for the OR season over the weekend and don't hope to find really high quality flowers as the main range is on an open ridge at 1100'. The winds whip up the clear cut below this ridge and, if strong enough, do a real number on the flowers and leaves. The new lease is on the Willamette Valley floor so I expect to have more "normal" results in the future. Dave Karnstedt Silverton, OR