Pick up will be at the Bonny Doon School bus barn on Ice Cream Grade on the following days and times only:
  • Please park on Ice Cream Grade and walk down to the bus barn.  Please do not pull down the driveway.
  • Everyone must wear masks and follow the markings onsite to maintain a COVID safe environment.
  • Contact us ahead of time at bonnydoondaffodils@gmail.com if these times won’t work for you.
  • Bulbs that are not picked up will be offered to others for free after Jan 30th.
  • Pick up is on:
    • Saturday, January 23, 9am - 3pm
    • Sunday, January 24, 9am - 3pm
    • Saturday, January 30, 9am - 3pm
The Vision:  This winter, the people of Bonny Doon — you and your neighbors — will plant daffodil bulbs throughout our mountain community.  Come spring, the vibrant golden blooms of hundreds of thousands of daffodils will appear along roadsides and properties of Bonny Doon.  Once established, the flowers will return every spring thereafter to commemorate the fire of 2020, the fight that saved Bonny Doon, and community renewal.  With strong participation, the bulbs will multiply in place to become over 1,000,000 blooms for Bonny Doon!   
(Please be responsible, it is illegal to plant in the State Park, Ecological Reserve, or other protected areas.)

How to Participate:  The Bonny Doon Community School Foundation is accepting donations for as many ½ bushel bags of bulbs as you, your family, and friends can put in the ground.  We are asking for a donation of $60 for every 175-bulb bag.  Order by January 6, pick up your bulbs late January, and start planting  — especially in those areas hardest hit by the 2020 fires.  If you would like to provide bulbs for others to plant, that option is on the order form.  If you would like to plant bulbs but are not able to donate, contact us here.  Our goal is to make this a true community project accessible to all.  Proceeds go to support Bonny Doon School.
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A Celebration of Community:  Our planting window will be 3 weeks long with a last push on February 14.  That’s St. Valentine’s Day — and 6 months to the day after the lightning storm that set off the CZU fires.  We can't gather because of COVID, but we can make this effort together to celebrate Bonny Doon.  
Some details...
Why Daffodils:  They bloom early in the spring in stunning yellow displays, a joyous symbol of hope and renewal.  They bloom vigorously in their first season and then with adequate sun will multiply in place for more prolific displays for years to come.  They are noninvasive and will not spread beyond where planted.  They are virtually gopher and deer proof.  They are hardy.  They require no watering and lay dormant during the dry season.   They are a fitting tribute to the heart and resilience of our community.  

Can daffodil bulbs really be planted that late in the season?:  Absolutely, if done in the following way!  Daffodil bulbs require about 10 weeks of moderate chilling in order to break dormancy with vigor.  Our bulbs will arrive in late January pre-chilled and ready to plant.  They are in cold warehouses in North Carolina now and will transit the cold continent mid-winter on their way to Bonny Doon.  We (including you after pickup) will simply store them in a cool, dry place for planting on or before Feb 14, Valentine's Day.  We won't let them sit warmed up in our heated homes or in the sun and we will plant them by mid-February for a successful spring bloom.

Bulb Pickup:  Pickup will be at Bonny Doon School on the following days only.  Orders that are not picked up up will be given to someone else to plant.  Please be heads up at pickup & follow the the COVID-safe protocols we will have in place.  More pick-up details will be provided later by email.
  • Saturday, January 23, 9am - 3pm
  • Sunday, January 24, 9am - 3pm
  • Saturday, January 30, 9am - 3pm​

​I want to plant bulbs but can't donate this year:  Please reach out to us through the Contact Us page.  The order form will have an option for folks to donate to provide bulbs for others to plant.  Our hope is that this will allow everyone who wants to participate to do so in the way they can, helping each other, to realize this community vision.  

Support Our School:  The Bonny Doon Community School Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit supporting public education in Bonny Doon for over 20 years.  When there is not a pandemic, we produce the Bonny Doon Art, Wine & Brew Festival which raises over $60,000 in a wonderful celebration of community.  Project Daffodil is a COVID-safe opportunity to give to the school and support our extraordinary community in this extraordinary year!   COVID and the fire have generated extra expenses for the school.  By choosing a quantity of bulbs and donation that fit for you, donating to provide bulbs for someone else to plant, or simply making a cash donation, you are supporting our wonderful little school at a critical time.  In many ways our school is a central pillar of the Bonny Doon community, so by supporting the school to emerge strong from this difficult year, your donation also supports the long-term vitality of our community.

Planting Guide:  We will post a more complete planting guide here soon, once we make one!  But daffodils are forgiving and the basics are pretty simple.  Plant 'em pointy side up, approximately 3 times deeper than they are tall.  Bulbs will do best with good sun and adequate soil quality.  Bulbs planted in too much shade or very poor soil will bloom well their first year but can peter out if not able to store up enough energy and nutrients to power a good bloom the next year.  Always let the leaves wither naturally as they photosynthesize until the end and then pass down their nutrients during senescence to juice the bulb for the next year's bloom.  Ideas on how to plant lots of bulbs efficiently:  We are still gathering ideas and expertise on this but the three main avenues seem to be your basic spade shovel, a good bulb planter with a soil release mechanism, or a bulb auger attached to a power drill, depending on the soil and your preferences.  The shovel is the cheapest and most accessible.  The auger maybe the easiest but can wrench wrists and elbows.  All methods would likely benefit from teamwork with one person digging and another planting.  If you have ideas or experience on this, perhaps with different tools or soil types, please share them with us via the Contact Us page to help us put together a good planting guide.  Thanks!
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​Tremendous Thank you to our bulb supplier Terra Ceia Farms:  Carl Staalduinen, third generation owner of Terra Ceia Farms has been incredible not only in offering the Bonny Doon Community School Foundation a fantastic arrangement for bulbs but for being super patient and helpful in answering all our questions about daffodil bulb storage, shipping and planting that underpin this project.  Project Daffodil would not be remotely possible without Carl and Terra Ceia Farms' outstanding support!  From the Bonny Doon Community to Carl and his team in North Carolina: THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Another giant thank you to Mary of Mary's Garden Patch who has generously shared both her industry connections and bulb expertise!  Mary's friendly and ready support unlocked this project!  THANK YOU MARY!  
A donation is not necessary to participate.  Contact us about getting bulbs at other donation levels including w/o donation.  
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