All, As Mary Sue mentioned, I do grow these outside in the mediterranean climate of the Bay Area, but they are not planted out in the garden. The University of California Botanical Garden had a nice B. disticha planted out in their very well drained African Garden (a warm, SW facing slope) for quite a few years. Concurrently, I was growing my first one in a pot, which was also left out in the elements all year. At that time I was unaware that this might be a problem. Even though these were summer growers in a wet-winter mediterranean climate, both bulbs put up with this insult for several years, until the severe frosts of 1990-1991 turned them to mush. These days, I keep them in pots. My current specimen is half-exposed, and measures about 5" in diameter at the soil line. It's in a pot of approximately 3 gallon capacity. (about 1 foot tall and one foot wide). I use a mix of 1/3 each coarse pumice, fir bark potting soil and Turface, with about 3 cups of sterilized, screened garden loam thrown in for good measure. I stage the pots in full sun for the summer, and it grows a fantastic fan of glaucous leaves, each with the same half-twist to them. I think I need to move it to a larger container, because it has not bloomed in the three years or so that I've been its caretaker. I water it almost every day when its in growth, feed it on a fairly regular basis with dilute organic soluble fertilizers (12-6-6) and move it into my small, unheated greenhouse for the winter. I don't water it again until it shows new growth in the spring, but because of the humidity and the cool weather, there is probably a little moisture down deep. Boophone is another of those amaryllids with perennial roots that prefers a bit of soil moisture year-round to prevent root desiccation. I have a few disticha seedlings coming along now, and I handle them the same way. I also care for a winter growing Boophone 'disticha', one B. ernestii-ruschii, and a couple of B. haemanthoides (Telos) all of of which are kept barely moist in summer, and left outside to catch the winter rains. (sometimes supplemented with hand watering). Feeding, like with disticha, is during growth, with the same food. Soil mix is similarly lean for these two. Most of these are dormant for the summer already. Regardless of growing season, if weather of 27° F (-3° C) or lower threatens, I protect the Boophone overnight. Ken East S.F. Bay Area, Ca. USDA Zone 9 (mediterranean) -2°C to 38°C p.s. Turface is a trade name for a fired clay soil amendment and ballfield surfacing product. I found it at a wholesale turf supply warehouse. http://profileproducts.com/productinfo_turface.htm… A close 'cousin' is commonly found in large garden centers marketed by the Schultz company as 'Clay Soil Conditioner' http://www.schultz.com/procc.htm I prefer Turface due to its slightly larger particle size and much lower cost.