The search for the lost ‘Weardale Perfection’
Rare old daffodil found in a plant pot now thrives in village churchyard
Narcissus ‘Weardale Perfection’ is a daffodil with an elegant bi–coloured, lemon–yellow trumpet and a creamy ivory perianth. It stands proud and tall on sturdy stems with larger, long–lasting flowers that can weather April winds.
In the Victorian era, it was a daffodil set apart from the rest. Its arrival marked a turning point in breeding as the first known tetraploid
Weardale Perfection daffodil
Weardale Perfection was nearly lost, until one man turned that around.
Dr David Willis, an internationally respected authority on Narcissus‚ developed the Guy L Wilson Daffodil Garden at the University of Ulster between 1973 and 1984.
Dr. Davis Willis
He set about tracking down the daffodil with initial searches proving fruitless until one crucial lead: a single mixed tub of old
The bulbs flower after propagation
“What I later discovered was that when she retired‚ she used to look after the Bonas offspring at Bedburn Hall in Teesdale. She also helped in the garden and admired some daffodils growing by the lake and was given some by the owner of the Hall‚ Mrs Bonas. Apparently, the Hall was a meeting place many years ago for a group of local Quakers who would gather there for Sunday lunch. One was Charles James Backhouse who brought a gift of ‘Weardale Perfection’ bulbs requesting they be planted where he could see them on subsequent visits and so they were planted by the lakeside where it fringes the entrance drive.”
“Jessie Young planted the bulbs in her garden and the next owner of the house, Sarah Stephenson lifted bulbs from the garden for the planter and luckily one was ‘Weardale Perfection’ .”
Nurse Jessie Young
“This was a breakthrough as we now had a provenance for the bulb, which I had identified as the true Weardale Perfection, it coming direct from the son of the breeder William Backhouse,” said David.
With painstaking propagation techniques, including twin–scaling (a method that encourages rapid bulbil formation from a single bulb), he increased the stock.
“By the year 2000, I had located a single bulb and with the single bulb, I had produced 538 bulbs by 2007. Of these, 450 were of flowering size. Approximately 215 were planted in the grounds of the Wolsingham parish church of St Mary and St Stephen in September of that year to coincide with the 200th anniversary of William Backhouse's birth. Another 188 were planted at 13 reserve sites to protect them.”
By 2007, hundreds of bulbs had been multiplied and those bulbs not planted in the grounds of the Parish Church were planted in several other recorded locations within Weardale as a conservation safety measure.
Since 2008 each Spring flowers of ‘Weardale Perfection’ have emerged to bring joy to local residents and visitors.
Wolsingham historian Anita Atkinson said the daffodils now form the heart of the village: “No one can say for certain how many daffodils will flower this spring‚ but last spring, it ran into scores and scores – perhaps well over 200.”
Daffodil displays at Backhouse Rossie Estate
“The flowering of ‘Weardale Perfection’ seems to remind people of others whom they associate with the history of it.”
“I make a point myself of going into the churchyard to see them, to remember the Backhouse family, one of whom cultivated it and who gave so much to the local area. They really do make a stunning scene with the church as a backdrop.”
“A friend of mine who lives in Wolsingham and is noted locally for her interest in nature, especially birds‚ said
As the people of Wolsingham await the heralding of spring in their village each year, ‘Weardale Perfection’ with its creamy bi–colour trumpets shows them it's arrived and that history is not lost.
Its bulbs have now been shared with botanical gardens and heritage collections, reintegrating this historic cultivar into the living tapestry of British horticulture.
Weardale Perfection daffodil bulbs
