A Legendary Virginia Hybridizer Shares His Memories of Many Decades of Devotion to the Daffodil

摘要

Falling down the rabbit hole of daffodils leads to far more than imagined. Down you go, and while absorbing the intricacies of selecting, growing, exhibiting, and hybridizing, one name reappears frequently. That this person's accomplishments often appear mythic only polishes the legend. After all, Bill Pannill is acclaimed as The Great One. Bill Pannill has long been the yardstick by which many daffophiles measure achievements. More than 160 of his creations are listed in the Daffodils to Show and Grow, including Divisions 1 through 9, and several Division 12s. His innovations and the quality of his flowers have been honored by the creation of the Pannill Award for outstanding show daffodils. The term "Bill Pannill blue" is not apocryphal—it refers to the red you've earned, if lucky, in competition with you-know-who.