The story of N. King Alfred begins in Newton Poppleford, England, in 1890. A curious gardener, John Kendall, crossed two varieties of daffodil — N. Emperor and N. hispanicus. And then he passed away…

His seeds were raised by Walter Hill, an employee of the family business. As the flowers grew, he tended the best of them. This selection, King Alfred, was the result of his effort (Brady 1).

King Alfred was recognized by the RHS in 1899, and was an instant success (Williams 11). Before long, it had conquered the world, and set the standard for yellow trumpets. It was named after one of England’s greatest kings (Brady 1, Missouri Botanical Garden 2).

For decades, King Alfred was the most numerous daffodil in the world. At one point, the market became so saturated that every grower stopped growing it. And when genuine stock became scarce, an opportunity was afforded to a successor — the Dutch Master (Missouri Botanical Garden 2, American Meadows).

Countless imposters have been marketed for decades, but these are the real King Alfred!