Warm B.C. winter forces early daffodil sales in Northwest Territories

Volunteers with the Canadian Cancer Society in Yellowknife are scrambling to prepare for Daffodil Month, as a warm winter in B.C. has forced the annual fundraising campaign to take place weeks earlier than usual.

Every April, the Canadian Cancer Society in Yellowknife receives daffodils that are grown on Vancouver Island. The flowers are then sold as part of the national campaign to raise funds for cancer research and support services.

However, daffodils bloomed early this year in B.C. due to a warm winter. Volunteers in Yellowknife will begin fundraising this weekend, rather than in mid-April as planned.

"It's a couple of weeks sooner than what we had originally planned for sure," said Nikki Grobekker with the Canadian Cancer Society's Northwest Territories chapter.  

"A lot of our long-time volunteers have stepped up and are taking extra shifts, reaching out to their friends and asking if they'd like to become volunteers for the Canadian Cancer Society."

Grobekker believes this is the first time B.C. daffodils have arrived in March.

Since Yellowknife is still experiencing below-zero temperature, Grobekker says local airport staff have been told to take extra precaution when handling the roughly 8,500 bunches of daffodils that are flown in, and to ensure the flowers don't die in the cold. 

The fundraiser in Yellowknife will take place from Thursday until the Easter long weekend.

To hear the full interview with Nikki Grobekker, click on the audio labelled: Warm B.C. weather has Northwest Territories fundraisers scrambling