It can take many years for enough stock of a new variety of daffodil to be built up so that it can be offered to more than a few specialist enthusiasts. This plant was identified as a promising seedling in Tasmania way back in 1987 but only has it now reached the mainstream here in Britain. It was awarded the Award of Garden Merit in 2011 by the RHS after being trialed at Wisley.
This pretty hoop petticoat daffodil, ‘Spoirot’, has bright white flowers 11/2in/4cm across which are very slightly tinted in the faintest of green. Reaching about 19cm/71/2in in height with arching or almost prostrate leaves up to 10in/25cm in length, the mass of flowers stands up well above the foliage so it can be seen clearly.
Flowering begins early, the trials staff at Wisley noted that in 2011 blooming began on 14 February and continued for 42 days with 180 flowers being produced from ten bulbs planted in September 2009; that’s quite a display. The daffodil experts on the Trials Assessment Panel who voted to give ‘Spoirot’ its AGM summarised their thoughts in this way: “Beautiful, eye-catching flowers, and very floriferous. The flowers have beautiful form. Flowers are above the foliage and are a consistent height.”
‘Spoirot’ is a hybrid between Narcissus bulbocodium subsp. bulbocodium var. conspicuus and N. cantabricus subsp. cantabricus var. foliosus raised at the Glenbrook Bulb Farm in Tasmania by Rod Barwick. ‘Spoirot’ is one of his Little Detective Series named after Agatha Christie’s fictional detective Hercule Poirot.
Source: RHS My Garden – Narcissus ‘Spoirot’: New Award-Winning Miniature
