This year spring has sprung early. A mild winter and, as we’re all too aware, lots of rain – which hasn’t put plants off growing! Every gardener will have noticed plants are a week or more ahead of where we’d expect them to be for this time of year.

Narcissi or Daffodils? The club competitions’ for March and April centre focus on Narcissi and Daffodils as well as early Tulips.

Which reminded me of the age-old question – What’s the Difference between a Daffodil and a Narcissus? The layman’s answer, nothing! Narcissus is the Genus, Daffodils fit into the species and subspecies of Narcissus. There’s over 50 species of Narcissus. Wild Daffodils are one species, often known as the “Lent Lily”. Cyclamineus is another species, “Jetfire daffodils belong to this group. Jack Snipe – which grows well in our part of Norfolk sits in another species.

With all the fancy species names, no wonder we refer to them all as Daffodils!

In the autumn, Garden Centres and specialist nurseries sell hundreds of different sorts, so why not buy a few? They are one of the most minimal maintenance and effort free bulbs you can grow, and of course, there are so many colours and shapes to choose from.

Orchids: The Garden Club meeting on 15th April focuses on indoor plants – Orchids. With the aptly named talk “Orchids and How to Look after them”. The speaker is Colin Thorburn, president of the Orchid Society of East Anglia. Well qualified, expert on all things to do with Orchids, Colin will be able to tell us all how to make our Orchids Happy. Meeting details are in the “What’s On” section of the magazine.