Types

• About 60 species of daffodils and thousands of cultivars exist. Daffodils are grouped or classified based on their flowers into 13 categories. In theory, all daffodils can grow in containers, but certain cultivars grow and perform better in the confinements of pots. The best cultivars to grow in containers are labeled "good forcers" or good for container culture. Avoid tall-growing daffodils, as they tend to bend and topple containers when they sprout and bloom.
  
  

Choosing the Container

• Select a container with drainage holes in the bottom. The smallest container suitable for planting daffodils bulbs is no less than 6 inches in diameter and 4 inches deep. This provides enough soil volume to sustain the planted bulbs. Larger-sized pots allow you to plant more daffodil bulbs. Use a container that is at least twice as deep as the daffodil bulb; if the bulb measures 2 inches tall, you need a container at least 4 inches deep to adequately house the plant's roots.
  
  

Planting Bulbs

• Fill the container one-half full of potting mix. Do not use topsoil, as it contains pathogens and organisms, and it compacts and hardens after a couple of waterings. Place the daffodil bulbs, wide side down and pointed side upward, atop the soil, spaced 1 inch apart. If the pot is large and deep, you may plant an additional layer of bulbs above the lower bulbs, which are covered with two inches of soil. Fill the container with soil until ½ inch remains below the container rim. Water the container until it begins to drain out the bottom holes.
  
  

Proper Treatment

• All daffodils, except those designated tazetta or paperwhite types, must be exposed to 15 weeks of temperatures between 35 and 48 degrees Fahrenheit. Tazetta bulbs bloom four to six weeks after being planted without any chilling. Move the container of planted bulbs to a refrigerator, unheated shed or outdoors where that temperature exists. Do not freeze the bulbs or place them outdoors where winter temperatures consistently remain below 30 degrees over the winter. Without this cold treatment, only leaves sprout in spring, not flowers. After the cold period, bring the pots indoors into a sunny window where temperatures are 50 to 60 degrees. Flowering occurs four to six weeks later. Alternatively, allow the bulbs to sprout outdoors as weather dictates in your area in late winter or early spring.