For a number of years I would reread Stan Farwig's article A NON-CONCISE GUIDE TO THE CULTIVATION OF BULBS. He was correct, it certainly wasn't concise. Still I found it very interesting as he and his partner grew a lot of bulbs very successfully and each time I read it I was reminded of something very valuable I had forgotten. It's on the wiki, but not easy to find and doesn't work for short attention spans. https://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/… But I'll quote from a section of it that addresses Jane's comment > A vexing problem when obtaining bulbs from the southern hemisphere is > that of acclimatizing them to a reversal of the seasons. Often they > are shipped just before growth is beginning in the southern hemisphere > and one must choose between allowing growth to commence and hope they > will tolerate the higher or lower temperatures involved in this > "off-season" period, or attempting to prolong their dormancy until the > proper season arrives and hope they do not become too desiccated (as > is more likely to happen in very young bulbs). Our experience has been > with winter-growing bulbs and we have tried both methods with mixed > and often unhappy results. Some general principles have been derived. > > When imported bulbs are allowed to begin growth out of season, their > growing period is usually short as they will go dormant as heat > increases and, I believe, especially when night time temperatures > remain elevated (and some will be prone to rot if their soil remains > moist at this time. As a consequence, their following resting period > is also abbreviated --- perhaps only two or three months --- before > their winter finally arrives. Restarting them after so short a > dormancy can result in poor growth or none at all. (One very fine > Gethyllis was given up as a lost cause when it made no appearance at > all the first winter, but has since thrived and multiplied.) > > It appears one should consider the phasing-in period to be a full > eighteen months for true bulbs rather than the six months one might > expect. > > Further we have found this an area where it is important to make the > distinction between a morphologically true bulb and a corm, for a bulb > is perennial and a mature corm is annual. This means that, once in > growth, besides putting up leaves, stems, flowers and setting seed, a > corm must replicate and possibly duplicate itself. For all this a long > growing period is essential. If a corm has struck roots and begun to > sprout, denying further development will most likely be the death of > the plant. It seems best to pot corms and store them in a dry spot > that is as cool as possible. (And hope they arrive in a completely > dormant state.) > > True bulbs are more likely to arrive with signs that growth has > started. We have found that while bulbs can tolerate interruptions > with relative impunity, they do seem to appreciate a short period of > growth in which they can establish roots in their new soil, > particularly if the root stock they arrive with is in poor condition. > So we normally pot and water them in a shady arid protected area while > the late spring temperatures remain benign... usually for six to eight > weeks... before withholding water. > > It is worthwhile to point out that, given an eighteen month phasing-in > period, the delay associated with seed propagation is considerably > shortened. > > This is the point where I mount a soap box for a bout of > proselytizing. If you desire uncommon bulbs, you will soon discover > that for most your only recourse is seed and this may seem an > insuperable drudgery. It did to us initially, but we learned patience > with the practice and it soon became at least half the pleasure. > Propagation by seed has a great many things to recommend it: it is far > less expensive and you receive many more plants for your money; with > more plants comes the possibility of interesting variants; if only a > small percent of your seedlings survive, those that do are > constitutionally disposed to live in your area and it is likely that > prefabricated bulbs of the species would not be; you will gain a > greater sensitivity to the dynamics of their growth; and with very > little effort and without really knowing how, you too will soon be > hailed as an expert. Finally, there is an intense satisfaction that > comes with being a participant in conservation. Mary Sue On 12/26/2025 9:55 AM, Jane McGary via pbs wrote: > I've been reading this thread as an outsider. I don't grow many South > African bulbs because I don't have a heated greenhouse. I'm puzzled > about why enthusiasts of these plants insist on buying bulbs from > South Africa, with the risk of damage in transit and huge shipping > expense, rather than obtaining seeds and growing their own plants, > which should be easier to do and far less expensive. Almost all my > bulbs (including a few African and South American species) were grown > here from seed. It takes a while, but it's very gratifying when the > flowers finally appear, and the bulbs increase enough to share or sell. _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net https://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> PBS Forum https://…