Timing for bulbs changing hemisphere?

Paul Tyerman ptyerman@ozemail.com.au
Fri, 11 May 2007 15:19:41 PDT
Lee,

Thanks for the response.  I was afraid that most people were going to 
advocate the small window of opportunity presented by just after 
dormancy.  I was hoping that some might have found other timings 
worked as well.

I know plenty of others have experience with this too. But as a
>general rule of thumb, the conversions that have worked the best for
>me are when I get a bulb as soon after it enters dormancy in the
>opposite hemisphere as possible, and then try to grow it as long as
>is feasible in what is left of its normal growing conditions in my
>hemisphere. I have tried to hold dormant bulbs over an extra 6
>months, but very few bulbs seem to like that. They shrivel and
>sometimes disappear before the proper growing season begins in my
>hemisphere, especially if they are very small bulbs, which is often
>the case. Now if I can't get them early enough after dormancy I just
>wait another year.

That is interesting that you've found that.  I have heard from others 
that the extra dormancy worked better (as John Grimshaw said worked 
well for his Galanthus) than trying for a short season.  I wonder if 
when trying to hold over until the proper season a period in my 
summer first may work best and then kept in warmth by the recipient 
to make sure that they waited until the "proper" winter to start 
their cycle?  I am thinking mainly the summer dormant bulbs/corms of 
course when I am talking about these time frames.


>Our only saving grace in So. Calif. is that we get May Gray and June
>Gloom which makes our early summers generally much cooler than what
>the U.S. Southern states experience. But many of the summer dormant
>species don't do well there anyway because it is so humid and wet
>during their summers.

Humidity is something we definitely don't have to worry about here in 
Canberra in summer.  A very rare event (along with rain in most cases 
now too! LOL)

Thanks again for the help.

Cheers.

Paul Tyerman
Canberra, Australia - USDA Zone Equivalent approx. 8/9

Growing an eclectic collection of plants from all over the world 
including Aroids, Crocus, Cyclamen, Erythroniums, Fritillarias, 
Galanthus, Irises, Trilliums (to name but a few) and just about 
anything else that doesn't move!!  


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