A Blooming Tradition: Commonwealth Honors College Hosts Annual Daffodil Planting Event During Family Weekend

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During Family Weekend, the Daffodil Planting event welcomed students and their families to participate together. Photo: Austin Lee

On Saturday October 26, under bright autumn skies, Commonwealth Honors College welcomed students, families, and staff for its annual Daffodil Planting event. This long-standing tradition brought together the UMass community to plant bulbs that will add a touch of spring color to the campus in the coming spring.

A Tradition of Sustainability and Legacy in CHC

The late Honors Dean Priscilla Clarkson, a passionate advocate for sustainability, established the tradition of planting daffodils each fall. The Honors College continues this tradition to honor her, inviting students to participate in creating a living legacy that not only enhances the beauty of the campus but also symbolizes the growth, renewal, and resilience shared among the members of the CHC community.

“It's a community-building event that was started in 2009. We use it as an opportunity to celebrate former honors dean Priscilla Clarkson, and to honor all the people that have gone through the college — students, faculty, and staff that have been so important in creating this really wonderful community.” 

- Dean Mari Castañeda

Building Community Through Connection

The event kicked off in the CHC Events Hall, featuring snacks and opportunities for community building. After warmly welcoming students and their families, Dean Castañeda introduced an activity aimed at fostering connections and strengthening the sense of community.

Participants were encouraged to strike up conversations with someone they hadn’t met before. The first question posed to the group was, “What is your favorite flower?” Didier, a parent of a student, responded to his partner, “My favorite flower is a tulip. I’m a painter who uses oil paints, and the colors are just beautiful.”

Participants shared their favorite outdoor memories. Photo: Austin Lee

After mingling with new faces, guests regrouped in a circle to introduce themselves and share their favorite outdoor memory. Before everyone headed out to the concourse, Dean Castañeda shared some inspiring words:

“Like the daffodil, we want to be resilient and strong to be able to emerge in the spring. How do we build that resilience so in the spring we come out strong, ready to go to make a big impact, not only in this community, but beyond?  The flowers are not just a metaphor, but a material way of us having that same strength," she said.

"The idea is that the daffodils are representative of something bigger than just ourselves. But also how do we learn from this experience of the daffodil that can be just as strong. So it seems so small and delicate, but can be very powerful,” added Castañeda.

A Community Gardening Experience

Once outside, the group gathered around a truck filled with planting tools, gloves, and buckets of different flower bulbs. Guided by Jennifer Konieczny from the UMass Amherst landscape management department, participants received a quick tutorial on planting techniques before digging in. 

“There are different-sized bulbs based on the type of flower. We want to make the hole about three times the depth of the bulb itself,” Konieczny explained.

Jennifer Konieczny shows participants how to plant bulbs in the soil. Photo: Austin Lee

She was excited to announce that there were many different types of flowers to be planted this year, including snowdrops, crocus, alliums, hyacinth, lilies, and a variety of others.

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Photo: Ha Nguyen

After grabbing tools and bulbs, guests found spots all along the concourse to start digging.

The planting festivities quickly turned into a lively and social gathering as students and families bonded over gardening, shared laughs, and the beautiful New England fall weather.

Classmates Sabrina and Brooklyn decided to join in on the event since they hadn’t had the opportunity to plant anything in a while. 

“My parents used to plant flowers all the time. It's been a while since I've planted anything, so I wanted to come and plant.”

Anjali, a CHC student majoring in biology, was excited to participate in the event this year after not being able to attend previously. “I saw this event for the first few years I’ve been here, but I was never able to go. I thought, ‘Oh, I like planting flowers.’ I did it with some of my friends back in New Hampshire, which is where I'm from. So, I thought, ‘Yeah, I want to try it out.’”

As the afternoon progressed, with leaves falling all around, attendees worked diligently, digging and placing bulbs into the soil.

A Meaningful Connection to Nature and Family

For many, the event was more than just a gardening project; it represented a chance to slow down, reconnect with nature, and make lasting memories with loved ones. Juan, a sophomore majoring in political science and managerial economics, brought many of his family members to the event.

Juan and his family. Photo: Austin Lee

“We come from a tropical country (Colombia), and we love planting plants. I was like, maybe it's something me and my family can do at the Honors College. They can do something that they love to do in their home country,” he explained.

Natalia, a first-year student majoring in animal science, invited her family members along, including her dog. Her mom, Kim, and sister, Amber, were excited to take part in the planting with her this year.

With the promise of a more colorful spring in sight, this year’s Daffodil Planting event was a success, bringing warmth, family, unity, and a bit of natural beauty to the Honors College Community — one bulb at a time.

Photo: Ha Nguyen