Dear All, I too am a Calochortus enthusiast although I'm not as skilled as Diana and Jane in growing them. I have a number of species that do very well for me and others that are less reliable. There are species that are quite happy with my cool wet winter weather and others that are not. Perhaps Jane's frames do the trick for the ones in the latter category. As for growing them from seed I have not found that to be an easy thing. True they do germinate well. I'm not one to rely on chemicals and therefore do not routinely use fungicide on all my seeds. No doubt I'd have better luck if I did. I've found starting seeds in late fall guarantees that they will be coming up and most vulnerable at the worst possible time for my weather. Some of those species that are from areas with a lot of rainfall fare better, but I've lost all the seedlings in dozens of pots some years. If I start them earlier perhaps it would work better, but we always seem to have the warmest temperatures of the year in September and October and wet and warm is not advised either. The last two years I've sowed seeds in February and have had much better success. My summer temperatures are cool enough that I can keep them growing on through part of the summer when they come up in March and even if it is still raining then, it often is raining less and the humidity is not constantly high. Some species I have grown from seed to flowering have dwindled so I still need to do better. Calochortus tolmiei, which is one of my favorites, I have purchased from various sources over the years and the bulbs have enchanted me that first year and then every year I seems to have fewer bulbs. It isn't one that offsets much so if the bulbs die that's it.As Diana points out this one is from many different elevations and habitats so hopefully one of these days I'll be growing some that are happy in my environment. I made the mistake of putting a couple that were still o.k. from two dwindling sources in the same pot since putting one bulb in a specially designed wooden box seemed such a waste of potting mix and space. The two bulbs come up at entirely different times and bloom at entirely different times. One has been in leaf for over a month now when there is no sign of the other. I've also experimented with growing Calochortus in the ground and have some C. vestae which now have bloomed in the ground for 3 years. I made a permanent raised bed for C. albus and it seems happy enough too. But that is the sum of my success. Strangely C. uniflorus which grows a couple of miles from my home in grassland overlooking the ocean has not been happy in my ground 800 ft. higher. In a container it blooms for months (and months earlier than in habitat) however so I don't know what that is about. I gave some to a friend who planted them in the ground at a lower elevation in a shadier spot and they did fine for a couple of years until the deer discovered them. I'm trying to provide a little shelter from the rain for some of the southern California species from drier areas by growing them in my covered shelter that is open at the sides and that may be helping a little. Many of the ones I am growing are in deep wooden boxes my husband built me out of pieces of redwood since the Robinetts suggested this was a good way to grow them. They advised not to grow Calochortus in black plastic as the soil would get too hot. Running out of boxes I've also used my deep terracotta colored pots with large slits up the sides. It is interesting if you unpot them to find the mother bulb at a very deep level, but in many cases the small offsets formed in the leaf sheaf at a entirely different level. Jane mentioned this in her comments, but I've always wondered if nature intended them to be at a higher level until they were bigger. These are the ones I am most successful with in my wet Northern coastal climate: C. albus, amabilis, amoenus, argillosus, catalinae, luteus, splendens(but it is marginal), superbus, umpquaensis, umbellatus, uniflorus and vestae. I lose some C. venustus every year but it is one that makes offsets so I may be about even. C. nitidus which is not a California species has been blooming for me the last couple of years. C. palmerii and nudus have departed and C. clavatus, plummerae, simulans, and weedii are in the dwindle mode. Some of those haven't bloomed yet. I have a few other species that may not last long enough to bloom. I recently read in one of my old Mariposas that Jim Robinett had trouble growing C. clavatus in his climate because it was too wet for it and I'm wetter than he was. Could it be started late like the seed I wonder by controlling the watering? When I repot in the fall some of them are already forming roots and some are not. A number of years ago someone from Idaho reported success growing Calochortus in a very cold climate. The secret was a lot of mulch and not much winter rain so that his plants did not emerge until spring. I think the quality of Ron Ratko's Calochortus seed is really exceptional and most years the Mariposa society members donate seed that is shared and it is good too. I accept responsibility that it is my technique that is the problem. The ones I am successful with range from very charming to spectacular and extend my bulb blooming season every year. Some of the members of this list were experimenting with higher elevation species that probably need chilling. Diana has mastered getting the seed to germinate using the technique she told about. What I'd like to know is if anyone is growing these long enough to get them to bloom and if they have to be chilled every year like tulips. Mary Sue Mary Sue Ittner California's North Coast Wet mild winters with occasional frost Dry mild summers