Arnold, I suppose it has to do with the time span between flowers and leaves. Calochortus and Brodiaea, etc., also flower "following the foliage" so to speak. It is usually a clear case-- I can't think of many geophytes that flower virtually in the middle of dormancy. This would be presumably the most hostile time of year for any kind of production. Closest thing I know is Strumaria aestivalis, a lovely villous-leaved thing that flowers in August-- when I invariably miss it. Still, I don't know of a term for the plants that flower shortly after the leaves die down or as they are browning. Dylan On 12/05/2009, Arnold Trachtenberg <arnold@nj.rr.com> wrote: > Dylan: > > I could see how this sets up a chicken or the egg scenario. When do you > start the observation when the flowers appear or when the leaves > appear. Depending on the perspective it could be either. > > Do the flowers appear before the leaves in Colchicum or after the > leaves. Is there an accepted 'convention' to determine the beginning? > > > Arnold > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ >