Thanks for the replies, one and all. I think we have fully covered this topic and have resolved the matter. I was prompted to ask the question because I had just received from Georg Fritz in Heidelberg, Gauteng some images of bulbs in bloom at Devon, in that area, including some of S. fucata (which he labels as S. bicolor). It appears that they have had wet weather there for weeks but, from the images, bulbs such as Nerine gracilis, growing in black soil seemed to be blooming spectacularly in those wet, marshy conditions. Amazing! Andrew San Diego