Mike - rain lilies (Zephyranthes) are not normally winter dormant. Their dormancy periods are much more aligned to hostile conditions. So here where several are Native they grow vigorously from first fall rains to first very hard freeze, then from last very hard freeze to first summer heat/ drought. They really prefer the intermediate temps of spring and fall, which may explain why yours are exiting dormancy. If they don’t get a very hard freeze, many prefer to continue growing through winter. I’ve found that cool greenhouse growth in winter really causes them to thrive. I’d say they want to grow in mid 50s. I can’t advise on forcing dormancy, since I’ve never tried it. But I would have left them out with perhaps a light frost cover, until the cold actually induced dormancy then put them in a very cool place like a garage. John Ignacio 8b Sent from my iPhone > On Oct 27, 2018, at 1:28 PM, Michael Kent <kenttoto@gmail.com> wrote: > > This morning, I checked on my collection of rain lilies that are stashed, > for the winter, in the basement. I was intending to trim off dead foliage, > etc., but instead found that nearly all of them (about 20 different > species) are still growing. Quite a few are even sending up new leaves. > They've been in a dark area (in their pots) without any water for a month. > I'm not sure if the failure to enter dormancy is due to the warm, humid > weather we experienced right up until they were transferred inside (frost > was expected), or fertilizing at the end of August (about two weeks later > than usual). Our temperatures were mostly in the 80's daytime, and mid-60's > overnight until they were brought in - no consistent colder temperatures. > However, the basement averages low/mid-50's for most of the year (except > summer). > > Is there a way I can force the rain lilies to enter dormancy? Or, since > they're currently using up stored energy in producing new leaves, would I > be better off keeping them going under grow-lights all winter? I do have an > area set up with grow lights, and could juggle plants around a bit to fit > in the rain lilies. > > Thanks in advance for any input on the issue. > > Mike > Finger Lakes Zone 6a - where it's currently gray and drizzly at 36 degrees, > but I'm staying warm with the help of this year's bumper crop of hot > peppers (which really liked the 80's and humid weather) > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…