Can I dig up and replant daffodils NOW?

[Xerocles]

I never did anything with daffodils before, except admire them. But I have a drunken row right in the middle of my front lawn. Impossible to mow around. I planned to transplant this fall. Researched, wait until the foliage dies back. Then dig and transplant. But I noticed as I dodged them with the mower today, the foliage is already dying back.....as much as half the foliage is browned off.....and we escaped those late frosts and freezes...so it's not temp or ice related.
Do I dig now? Store til fall? Replant right away? Take a nap and hope the problem goes away?
These were acceptable in bloom this year, but I noticed the others, growing at the woodline or even in the forest, did absolutely spectacular. Should I go for a partially or mostly shady location to relocate? I thought they were an open meadow, plenty of sun type plant. But my eyes showed me different this year.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

I would. The longer they have getting ready to bloom the better they will like it.

 

[ducks4you]

You won't harm them at all digging them up Now. They may Not flower next year, but will flower the year after, if transplanted this Spring.
It isn't that you can't put them away and plant in the summer/fall. You will probably be so busy gardening that you will forget about them and let the bulbs dry out and die.
Here's the deal about transplanting. If you dig enough dirt around a plant it doesn't really notice that it is being transplanted.
I like to clean up my front sidewalk beds in August/September, where I have tulips. At that stage, all of the leaves have died down and I am the only one that knows where they are. I dig deep, separate bulbs, maybe move some, maybe give some away, and replant. They reward me every Spring with lots of color.
Those leaves are putting away energy into the bulbs and the bulbs are multiplying right now, which is why @Dirtmechanic suggested waiting, maybe another month to transplant.
Some daffodills are over 100yo.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I've had them do really well in bright sun. A little shade down't seem to bother them but not too much shade. My thoughts are more with drainage. If the area is really wet they will likely rot. If it is to dry they don't do really well either.
Lots of bulbs and tubers store up energy for the next year and then die back and go dormant. If they store up enough energy before you move them they might bloom next year. But they might use that energy to make roots and foliage instead of flowers so they can store up energy for the following year.

I haven't noticed it so much with daffodils but some others like iris can get too crowded which hurts their bloom. Still, that might be part of the problem. I don't notice everything.

 

[ducks4you]

Divide IRIS in July.

Dividing & Transplanting Irises: A Step-By-Step Guide

When well cared for, iris plants will need divided on a regular basis. Learn how to do it right here.

www.gardeningknowhow.com

 

[Dirtmechanic]

Divide IRIS in July.

Dividing & Transplanting Irises: A Step-By-Step Guide

When well cared for, iris plants will need divided on a regular basis. Learn how to do it right here.

www.gardeningknowhow.com

Around here the soil is so hard and the heat so high and the water so low that July and August really become September for stuff like that.

 

[ducks4you]

Yeah, don't divide beFORE July, we should say.