(It probably was one of your calla lilies.) I [think] I know exactly the bugs that you are talking about because I have had them myself. I think they are a type of bug known as "springtails". Google that name and then filter for images only. I am betting you will find I am correct. They are "mostly" harmless, but.... well, just keep reading. I amend my clay soil, and I have a patch that hasn't been clayey for a very long time. They actually take up residence in the area that drains much more freely. And I have had them take residence in the bulbs that grew really well too. It is hit and miss for me though. Some bulbs manage to get away. Either way - the little white bugs are slow eaters. My solution is to plant my summer-flowering bulbs in the spring and dig them up after the first frost has killed the foliage. And to plant my spring-flowering bulbs in the fall and dig those up after the summer heat has killed the foliage. This way the little white bugs usually eat less than the bulb grows and they aren't left to keep eating when the bulb is not growing and dormant. I do hypothesize that a small amount of rot is a window for their entrance though. The springtails actually love to eat the already rotting material. This is why they don't burrow into the bulb, but rather eat layer after layer of the rotting outside material. They are actually a sign of good soil health. If the bulb experiences no rot at all, then they do not take up residence. But if the bulb has some rot and the bugs make a colony there then I am betting that their activity keeps the rotting process moving along - it would make sense evolutionarily since they are going to need to keep eating. I hypothesize that they produce some kind of enzyme or chemical that keeps the rotting process moving along which is normally good for decaying matter in the soil, but not so good for your bulbs once they are crawling all over the rotten outer layer. SO: in conclusion, make sure your soil drains at least decently so you are preventing or slowing the rotting process to begin with, and pull them out of the ground once the foliage dies so the critters cannot keep eating and undo all the work that the plant has done storing energy in the bulb. I hope that helps :)

I have Orange Turks cap Lily that I would Like to trade for Calla Lily. Can also exchange Iris, Dusty Miller, Ribbon Grass, Hosta or Daff bulbs. Turks cap has grown for me in the deep freeze of Wis and is very hardy. Send me an 3-mail

Canna is the one that has the spectacular leaves...they can be very large AND very colorful! American Meadows has both on sale, but here is one of their Cannas that not only has a beautiful flower but also some striking folage: http://www.americanmeadows.com/SpringFlowerBulbs/CallasCannas/OrangeCannaLilywithvarigatedfoliageStripedWonder.aspx I've used American Meadows for Peonys and Lilies for the past few years and have always been VERY pleased with the size/quality of their bulbs for the price... Look at both the Canna and the Calla lilies and hopefully this will help clear things up.

Oh, and a post script- Callas grown from seed take sometimes 2, but usually 3 years to build a big enough tuber base to want to flower. Don't be surprised when you just get leaf mass the first year. I typically grow mins in an aquaponic coconut coir grow bed indoors for almost a year under my favorite blend of T5HO aquarium bulbs (standard florescent grow bulbs are garbage) on a 24 hour light cycle to maximize growth, then dug up the bulbs up a few months before planting time to let them be dormant for a bit. That way, they always bloom when I put them in the ground.