A plucky daffodil has defied the gale force storms, torrential rain and widespread floods to flower three months ahead of schedule.

The dwarf daffodil or narcissi doesn’t normally show its colours until April.

So horticulturalists at Abbotsbury Sub-tropical Gardens near Weymouth were amazed when they spotted the familiar yellow and white petals in bloom last week.

Despite the recent winter storms that have hit the UK, the temperatures at Abbotsbury have been relatively mild for January with the mercury often nudging 10C during the day.

The gardens are also situated in a valley which shelters the plants from the winds.

As a result about a dozen of the small bulbous plants have been fooled into thinking it is spring already.

Stephen Griffith, the gardens’ curator at Abbotsbury, said: “It is quite unusual to see these daffodils flowering so early.

“We thought the cold December might push it back a bit but we have had mild temperatures this January that seem to be the reason it is in full bloom so early.

“They normally don’t flower until April, so it is four months earlier than we expected.

“We do have our own micro-climate here at the gardens because it is nestled in a valley and gets quite a lot of shelter from the wind.

“Despite the severe winds and storms the south west of England has endured over the last couple of weeks, these flowers had enough protection from them to thrive.”