In March, La Hougue Bie mound is covered in daffodils. We take a closer look at our Island's history with this spring flower.

This was taken on 14 March 1978 and appears in the JEP the next day. It is Don Le Quesne, one of the major daffodil growers, packing blooms at his farm, Beaconsfield. It was to mark a record £31,000 worth of daffodils that had been exported to the Continent in one day the previous week.

This image was taken on 20 March 1979 and appeared in the JEP the following day. That year the late Mothering Sunday meant growers could make money from daffodils. It was taken at Beaconsfield Farm and the people appearing at Mathurin Le Gal, Patrick Cornic, Kathy Dwyer and Marie Lagoda.

four people in a field picking daffodils

This image was taken on 5 March 1979 and appeared in the JEP on 7 March asking if spring was springing. The caption said “pictured above are some of the first daffs to have been picked by Mr Edward Egre, of Uplands, St Peter, being cared for on their wall shop by his daughter, Joan.”

woman stands by a signa saying daffodils for 20p

Mr N.S. Cooke, of Le Passage, St Lawrence, is at the moment busily harvesting his crop of daffodils, and his employees are daily picking the fine blooms which are sent to his store in St Helier to be packed and then despatched by steamer each morning for Covent Garden.

Honeymoon couples were treated to a champagne reception and bunches of daffodils upon their arrival in Jersey in March 1964.

Couples drink champagne on arrival at the airport

There are two Jèrriais words for daffodils: des g’zettes and des pipots. Some people may use one or the other, or else may distinguish between des pipots for wild daffodils and des g’zettes for cultivated daffodils.

Jaune comme eune g’zette

As yellow as a daffodil