"How about if in the next few weeks anyone who is willing to share with the group reports of any species of geophyte that he or she has gotten to bloom in one year or less. Just report the name of the plant and your location." Any number of direct seeded alstroemeria hybrids and more than a few species (including aurea, ligtu, longistamina and pulchella) have bloomed in less than one year in Davis, CA; hot, dry from June through September; cool (23 Cday and 10 to 15 C night), humid to wet but occasionally dry, spring and fall; radiation freezes, down to -5 C in the winter months, with occasional Arctic express; rainfall largely in the December to March interval. Irrigation applied in the April to October interval as required to keep soil near field capacity (wet). Seedlings of Lilium phillippii (sp) also flowered in the first year from sowing I have germinated lots of stuff that has not flowered in one or two years, including every glad, amaryllid and calla that I've tried. (Mary Sue; Do you want greenhouse results thrown in? If so the alstroemeria species list grows considerably).