THEY are beautiful, fragrant, long-lasting as a cut flower — and also something of a shock.

I decided in the autumn to buy some bulk bags of mixed daffodils from two large stores to brighten-up the bank outside my recently more-or-less completed Arcon prefab.

But, what a surprise.

Both bags were, on paper at least, mixed.

One bag produced a sea of multi-headed narcissi and just one single trumpet daffodil.

The other bag was the same, except the yellow and gold narcissi were augmented by just one multi-head of a pale variety.

There are gardening bargains to be had, but it seems there is something in the mantra you get what you pays for.

Those bargains include the seed companies catching-on to the notion they were putting too many seeds in packets for the average gardener.

Both gardener and company profit from this reduction in waste and price.

There are also more four-for-a-fiver deals out there.

Time was when a packet of F1 hybrid sweetcorn would cost about £3 but, by combining my sweetcorn purchase the other day with three other veg, that price came down to just £1.25.

Companies are also increasingly turned on to the top end of the market — premium price for special products.

Suttons, for instance, has just produced a brand new blight resistant beefeater tomato, Crimson Blush. Brilliant!

The price? 39p – per seed!

No criticism of that because companies put great resource into creating a new variety and, if you want it and want it now, why not?

That other old adage, 'you pays your money and takes your choice,' comes to mind.