Narcissus cyclamineus Peeping Tom

From the end of winter, Narcissus 'Peeping Tom' bears delicate golden yellow flowers. These elegant flowers are formed by a long trumpet surrounded by a corolla of delicately curled petals. This old variety blooms earlier and for longer than most daffodils. It has received the RHS Award of Garden Merit, the gold medal of the plant world. It is reliable and easy to grow in well-drained soil. This hardy plant settles quietly in the garden. The dwarf varieties are ideal for rockeries and planters. Its flower is ideal for creating bouquets.

Narcissus 'Peeping Tom' was introduced in 1948. It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family. The genus Narcissus has about 50 species mainly found in Western Mediterranean, but also in Africa and Asia. The cyclamineus species, from which it originates, is native to northwest Portugal and northwest Spain, and owes its name to its outer petals that form a completely reflexed corolla, like cyclamens. This characteristic is often greatly attenuated in its hybrid descendants.

Narcissus 'Peeping Tom' is a small, vigorous plant that reaches about 25 to 30cm (10 to 12in) when flowering. Its leaves are approximately 15 to 20cm (6 to 8in) tall. Its flowers boast a perfectly uniform golden yellow. They are composed of a corolla of slightly translucent and curled petals, on which a particularly long and slender corona is inserted. It is slightly undulated at the edge and flared. Despite its small size, this early-flowering plant is robust. It naturalises in the garden within 3 or 4 years, through the production of bulblets. The linear foliage is green-grey in colour.

Narcissus 'Peeping Tom' grows in any well-drained and loosened soil, but the results are less impressive in excessively wet soils, especially in summer, or excessively acidic.

There are so many daffodil cultivars that one can enjoy them for three months in spring without ever getting tired. They all have in common the ability to naturalise easily, to offer an infinite range of yellow and white shades, and to often emit sweet fragrances. Grow them in large clumps in lawns or at the edge of flower beds (at least 20 bulbs) for an enhanced effect. Pair ‘Peeping Tom’ with squills, crocuses, hyacinths, early-flowering botanical tulips, forget-me-nots, pansies, or liverworts. A group of ‘Peeping Tom’ daffodils in a vase creates a sensational effect. This daffodil is also perfect in pots.

Daffodil or Narcissus? Botanically speaking, daffodils are part of the narcissus family. They bear flowers grouped in twos or more, and their corona forms a bell-shaped trumpet longer than the corolla is wide. The botanical species have the charm of wild plants and thrive in rockeries: N. bulbocodium, N. canaliculatus, N. juncifolius, N. pseudonarcissus, the simple wood jonquil, are among the prettiest.  

For bouquets, we advise against mixing narcissus with other flowers, especially tulips, as daffodil stems contain a substance that causes other flowers to wilt quickly. This detrimental effect on other flower species can be reduced by dipping the ends of narcissus stems in hot water for 1 to 2 minutes.