Every year I plant a new type of bulb and last year it was the Thalia Daffodil, also known as the Narcissus. I was prompted this time not by a visit to a manor house, or the recommendation of another avid gardener, but an unexpected source. The impetus was a photograph that I was given of my grandparents on their wedding day.
They were wed during wartime, and as such were unable to have lavished themselves with great luxuries. This meant that my grandmother’s dress was partially made from a lace table cloth, and sewn by a neighbour. It also meant that she was unable to have an expensive bouquet professionally made.
She was given a bunch of Thalia Daffodils, as white as her gown by my great grandmother. They were neatly held together with a hand tied ribbon, and accessorized by sprigs of mint. And in the photo in one hand she carried the daffodils as if they were the most expensive flowers she could imagine, and in the other she held the arm of my grandfather as if he were the greatest of gentlemen ever to live.
After having seen this image I knew Thalias would be making a home in my garden. When I researched them I found that they have existed since 1916, and have maintained popularity for nearly one hundred years. Now, my Thalia’s stand tall in my garden as a symbol of true love, that which does not put on airs, but is enduring, and pure.