Linnea, Freesias have bang for the buck. Buds along the stem open in sucession for a longer show (than daffs, tulips, etc) in early spring. Multiply easily and would likely store well. Pink with yellow throat are really nice. The golden yellows seem to multiple the fastest. I think ranunculus are drop dead gorgeous but they too are spring bloomers. I have not had success with out of the ground storage. Perhaps stored in fast draining soil, moistened every 2 months? Ixia are graceful with long arching narrow stems loaded with fat buds along the last 6+ inches. Late spring. Have never tried storing. Need to plant in same hole for great effect. Lovely. Babiana have rich jewel colors - over quickly and plentiful foliage is slow to ripen. Late spring. I only keep them because of the colors (in a vy large pot with chives). Sparaxis are easy. I think the purply ones are the prettiest. I tired of the red quickly. Trigridias have a larger flower than sparaxis; open to show the interesting mottled contrasting centers. Easy. Didn't combine well in my garden. I have had lousy luck with anemone blanda. De Caen anemones do great (bloomin now with the daffs) & very showy. Don't know about storage. Summer blooming semi-tropical bulbs/tubers are scant. I think you have the best with dahlias & tuberous begonias. A showly glad is Wine And Roses (I think) but it must be staked. The prettiest don't seem to be offered online. Watsonia needs to be in the ground for 2 or 3 years for a good show. Deep rooted - not a good subject for pots. Mature clumps 4+ feet tall. Devil to dig out established ones. Milk & Wine Crinum Lily - a want Scarborough Lily aka Vallota speciosa - love it. Sprekelia - very exotic looking. Mealy bugs get into mine. Homeria - seldom seen spring bloomer. Long wiry stem with canteloupe colored, tubular bell flowers - charming. My more flamboyant gardening friend saw mine & loved. Also in yellow if I remember correctly. Dutch iris - a spring must for me in medium lavender. Bletilla striata - love these. Finally found a spot where they're happy with morning sun only. Don't see foliage yet - maybe the huge weed crop obscures? Cyclamen florist type. Easy spring. Sorry so many are spring.

"Splurge" is probably too mild a term for my bulb behavior, but I'm on hiatus this year (well, sort of -- I don't guarantee anything if I see something really good) while I concentrate on increasing groundcovers and filler plants to "pull the garden together" (as if). A favorite South African summer bloomer for me has been Crinum x powellii "Album". The pinks of this hybrid are not as pleasing to me as the more robust white, which I consider spectacular. Puts up bloom spikes for 3 months, at least. A favorite dahlia is one I found a few years ago in a local nursery, though I've never seen it anywhere else around here since and it only seems to be available in Europe (so heaven knows how it ended up there that year). It's called Ariko (link below), is pure orange and shaped like a star. The info on the package indicated that it would grow 1 to 2 feet tall, so I put it in front of the border -- the first time. It has never been less than 5 - 6 feet tall, occasionally more like 7 or 8, and has a trunk like a tree, practically. Very sturdy, self-supporting and floriferous. Vase life more than a week, easily. Tea roses, dahlias -- everything grows bigger in California, it seems. Here is a link that might be useful: Ariko Dahlia

Thanks so much, Debbie - the orange ones being the "wild" type makes sense - I think some of mine are from self seeding by now - maybe they revert. We will schedule a visit to Annie's Annuals, which is only about 30 minutes away from us. The only problem I have with going there is that I always come back with way more plants than I intended! Freesias - I love them too. I have a bunch of the large modern ones in bloom right now. My next door neighbor has several areas in her front garden where much smaller, white ones come up every year. Her house was built in 1907, so I am guessing they are old. It took her a few years to convince her DH not to mow them, but she finally did. They are blooming now in fairly large swatches (maybe 3 feet by 8 feet) in several places. Seil, I'm sure you know that sparaxis do not like cold - they basically like cool wet winters, and then bloom in the early Spring. They like dry summers, when they go dormant. I'm sure you can grow them there, but I would not expect them to survive a Winter. Maybe in pots? One of the things I really like about them is that the bulbs are only about 1/2 inch or less across, and only need to be burried about 1/2 inch down, so there is hardly any digging, Jackie

Sue, I'd say that they probably prefer it with a little more light, but as inexpensive as the bulbs are, I'd go ahead and try it - if you don't get blooms you can always dig them up and put them somewhere else next year. I also had them growing in a pot down in Tucson, so you can always move them. Paperwhite - good for you! That's great! I'm glad to hear about your tuberroses ... and it gives me hope for mine. I'm convinced that it was just a really awful exposure for them, so I'll dig 'em up when it gets cold and move them. And if they don't do better in their new spot... well.... you might get some more at the next swap! >smileGT, it does seem early, but if they're happy, who's to argue? I would guess that the blooms won't arrive until spring, like Easy sez. Okay, I'm thinking single whites and double blues... hmmmm...