Aristotle must have felt wealthy in early spring when he saw the profusion of bright daffodils. “Yellow colored objects,” he said, “appear to be gold.”

The riches of these glorious greens blooming boisterously are bringing needed color. They foreshadow the arrival of avian inspiration since, as William Shakespeare observed, “Daffodils come before the swallows dare.”

Reaching further into the sky for inspiration, herbalist Nicholas Culpepper explained, “Yellow daffodils are under the dominion of Mars, and the roots thereof are hot and dry in the third degree.” He expounded on their medicinal uses, noting, “The roots boiled and taken in posset drink cause vomiting and are used with good success at the appearance of approaching agues, especially the tertian ague, which is frequently caught in the spring time.” 

However, in the case of daffodils, there is a fine line between prescription and poison. Some agree with Culpepper on the healing help that daffodils bring. These plants are believed to be a remedy for many things. It has been suggested that baldness, cancer, uterine troubles, congestion, dysentery, bronchitis, and painful joints, among many other issues, can be treated with tinctures, powders and potions made from daffodils.

But don’t try a treatment too soon. At the other end of the spectrum are those who insist that daffodils are poison. 

Livestock, pets and even people have been known to suffer illness from their ingestion. A cooking class of British students in 2009 added daffodil bulbs to their soup, perhaps thinking it was wild onion or leek, and fell quite ill. Besides the nausea, vomiting and diarrhea that could occur after consumption, neurological and cardiac events might cause the worst-case scenario of loss of life. This may be the reason that daffodils are known to be a symbol of death.

We are not the only creatures that know better than to partake of this flower’s fluids. Insects, including butterflies, moths, flies and bees, prefer native plants and leave daffodils to reproduce via their dividing bulbs.

Yet daffodils still have a place in the hearts and memories of fans of the old Little Rascal/Our Gang comedies. In one episode, Breezy Brisbane embraces the power and silliness of the daffodil when he recites this verse:

High up grew a daffodil
I couldn’t hardly reach her
Said I to me, “I think I will
Get it for my teacher!”

I climbed to get the daffodil
Out on a limb so thin
I tumbled down like Jack and Jill
And skinned my little shin

And here’s the pretty daffodil
I brought to my dear teacher
I love her dear and I always will
I’m awful glad to meet cha!

William Wordsworth, a far better poet, shared the Little Rascals’ love of the “jocund company” of these flowers in the beginning of his better-known poem:

I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o’er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils.

Suzan Bellincampi is director of the Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary in Edgartown, and author of Martha’s Vineyard: A Field Guide to Island Nature.