This 2nd year clump of 'Sugar Cups' glows in the late afternoon sun.

I’m sure that those who have followed this blog for a while will agree that I am a daffodil nut.

I have been collecting for years and spend part of my annual vacation making daffodil tours.

I know those varieties that bloom early, mid-season and late.  I expect the first in February, peak bloom in March and a few late stragglers in April.

But this year…  I would say that my dafs are at least half finished ALREADY!

This turn of events has rocked my world.  I am discombobulated for sure.

My disorientation is further enhanced by the fact that I am in a new house.  The old garden is next door but the view from these windows is different.

The ‘February Gold’ dafs in the sideyard of my old house came and went before February – barely noticed.

The treasured ‘Barrett Browning’ blossoms in the back garden were gone before I picked a single stem.

Here are my 'Sugar Cups' up close and personal!

But there is always a silver lining…

When I survey the back garden from my new bedroom I am dazzled by a spectacular clump of ‘Sugar Cups” and a long golden swathe of ‘Campernelle’.

The ‘Sugar Cups’ are a tazetta hybrid that is creamy with a deeper yellow cup.  At first glance it looks like a golden tinted ‘Grand Primo’.

It is much taller than ‘Grand Primo’ with sturdy stems and an abundance of flowers.

I bought 8 ‘Sugar Cups’ bulbs last year from Bill the Bulb Baron.  The bulbs were hefty and, as usual, I planted them in a clump.

My theory is that if I dig a shallow wide hole and pack the bulbs in so there is a little space between each, the planting will look like an established clump very quickly.  Truthfully, I came to this method because it was much easier to plant this way.  I use this method almost exclusively.

The ‘Sugar Cups’ have responded well to this treatment.  In year two they look like an established stand.  I have harvested at least 9 stems from this planting and there are plenty left.

They gleam like a beacon when I look out my new bedroom window.  They are flanked by a fragrant lavender spider azalea and a 100 foot white oak.

Life is good!

Here is a vase full of 'Grand Primo' and other lovely January flowers.

Yesterday after much rain, I ventured out to see what was going on in the garden.

I was startled to realize that the ‘Grand Primo’ daffodils were in bloom.

‘Grand Primo’ is a small white narcissus with a creamy yellow cup.  Flowers are borne in clusters and are very fragrant.  It is one of my favorite daffodils.

‘Grand Primo’, in my experience, blooms in late February or early March.

And yet – here it was in January.

I didn’t know quite what to think.

I was delighted to see it and yet sad that it would soon be gone.

My Peggy Clark Japanese apricot looks particularly fetching when adorned with glistening raindrops.

It has been unseasonably warm here.

The garden has more January flowers than I ever remember seeing.

My Japanese apricot (Prunus mume ’Peggy Clarke’) is in full bloom.  The ground beneath is covered with pink confetti.   I’ve been surprised how many honeybees have been out working the flowers.

My Professor Sergeant camellia (Camellia japonica ‘Professor Sergeant’) at my old house next door, looks like a red carnation tree.  I’ve been pleasantly surprised that Fess is highly visible from the deck at my new house next door.

The daphnes are beautifully mounded and loaded with rounded flower clusters.

The Bulb Baron’s fall blooming tazetta daffodils are beginning to put on a show.  I kind of like it that here in Mississippi they will probably consistently bloom in early winter – a teaser before the feature presentation.

I'm quite taken with this Chinese camellia that is producing her first full crop of flowers this year.

I’m probably the most excited though that my Chinese camellia (Camellia fraterna) produced a good bloom for the first time.

This camellia was highly recommended by my bud Bill Fontenot.   On my annual December visits we would always view his prized specimen.

Bill loves this camellia because its diminutive flowers have a delicious scent.

His plant is a lovely thing with arched branches heavily laden with buds.

Heavily budded but unfortunately never in bloom when I was around to see.

On one visit I honed in on the plumpest bud I could find.  The bud was showing a little color and looked about ready to open.  I leaned forward and nuzzled it to try and catch a whiff…. but all was in vain.

Now, thanks to my friend Margie Jenkins at Jenkins Farm and Nursery, I have my own Chinese camellia.

The camellia is absolutely loaded with dainty blooms.  They are about two inches across and white with golden stamens.  The scent is indeed enticing.

It was worth the wait.