Opportunity to Remember Loved Ones This Fall

By: Allison Gilbert

Gather friends, family, and neighbors. Plant one bulb to mark each year your loved one lived. Daffodils will come back spring after spring and they’re virtually indestructible. The best time of year to plant daffodils happens to be the fall, so take advantage of this nature-given opportunity to remember the family and friends you never want to forget. 

In my book, Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive, Becky Heath, co-owner of Brent and Becky’s, offers the following advice for success:

• Choose a sunny spot.

• Plant each bulb at a depth of three times their height, spacing them three times their width apart.

• Autumn is the best time to plant daffodils because the bulbs prefer cool soil. If you’re in a southern climate, stick with planting jonquils or tazettas, as these daffodils are better suited for warmer temperatures.

If you enjoy spending time outside honoring your loved one, read this post for even more nature-fueled ideas.

Allison Gilbert is co-author of Listen, World!: How the Intrepid Elsie Robinson Became America's Most-Read Woman, the first biography of American writer Elsie Robinson. Her previous books include, Passed and Present: Keeping Memories of Loved Ones Alive. On Allison’s popular grief and resilience blog, she features Q & A’s with some of the most notable names in our culture today including, Arianna Huffington, Jon Stewart, and bestselling authors Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Dani Shapiro, and Susan Orlean. She is host of "Women Journalists of 9/11: Their Stories,” a 20-part documentary series produced in collaboration with the 9/11 Memorial & Museum. Featured journalists include Savannah Guthrie, Maggie Haberman, Linda Wertheimer, Dana Bash, and many others.

Please take a moment to follow her on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. She’s everywhere as “agilbertwriter."