Is it just the flowering stems that have been cut off? Or have the leaves been removed too. If the former I'd just plant them at the depth they were before. If they came from a similar climate to yours the weather shouldn't hurt them.

I've not heard of Narcissus being moved 'in the green' before except in an emergency (eg house move or something).

Thanks for the reply!

All the greenery has been cut off to about one inch above the bulb.
Some of the stalk that is left is white- apparently what was growing underground. Five bulbs have an inch of green stalk left.

I wouuldn't expect them to bloom next year (or maybe for 2 or 3 years), this has got to be a severe sugar depletion for the bulb (unless it was growing in a greenhouse and is about to go dormant).
Daffs are very tough and survivors, so will probably make it.

Well, I don't think it would hurt to try to pot them up as you were saying, get as much sunlight on them as possible. I personally wouldn't do it because I have a tendency to overwater bulbs in pots & they rot.
I did dig some daffs up a couple of times shortly after flowering & they did bloom the next year. Another time I had to move some common heirloom daffs just after blooming & it was 3 years before they bloomed. In each case I moved them with the foliage intact. Hopefully you will get lucky & they will bloom.

Thanks, I did pot them up and hopefully they will do O.K.

Why would they do this? I could see this for a bulb like a Lycoris or Crinum, that never truly goes dry-dormant, but not a Narcissus. Why not just ship at the typical time in late summer or fall?

I must say that I would never order from this company again, and might go so far as to request a refund. This makes not one lick of sense!

It was on Ebay and the seller is only one state from me(just a few hundred miles) so I requested the greenery remain.They were advertised as freshly dug and they were. My plan was to plant immediately and the bulbs would have the greenery to store energy for next years blooms.

His ad stated free shipping. If I had known the greenery would have been removed, I would have paid extra for him to leave the
stems on.

I had no clue they would arrive chopped off. I learned a valuable lesson.

Background as to why.....

I have always wanted heirloom jonquils like I see blooming on old homesteads and farms. I have never had luck with modern bulbs naturalizing in my garden.

Last week I was driving a little south of my home and saw thousands of these jonquils blooming everywhere.

It was on a certain stretch of highway and I was mesmerized.

I never saw anyone to ask if I could have or buy some from them.
Once home, I looked online and saw the same jonquils on Ebay.
I really thought I would receive them freshly dug and intact.

Old House Gardens did not have them available and Brent and Beckys did not have them so I in my impatience, decided to
order from Ebay.

This post was edited by lsst on Tue, Mar 11, 14 at 23:12

Totally understandable. The jonquils are fabulous this year. Maybe because we had more cold than usual. I would suggest you get a copy of Garden Bulbs for the South by Scott Ogden. It will save you a lot of time and aggravation.

Donna,
Thanks, I will look into that book.
My initial research was that these may be lent lilies but I now think they are Campenelle jonquils.
The stems are very narrow and rounded like a reed. The bloom is yellow 2 inches in diameter. The total height is 12-14 inches for the stems. The trumpet is short.
I have not seen any where I live but one hour south and thousands are blooming.

This post was edited by lsst on Wed, Mar 12, 14 at 20:49

O.K. Campanelle is probably out as I just read that it is mostly sterile and its greenery is flatter and bluish green.
These bulbs were all over the place. I would see drifts of hundreds and then one lone bloom right next to the highway.