One of my favorite and most reliable bloomers here. It is too early in the year to expect flowers. My patch is over 10 years old and about 3 feet in diameter from a single bulb. For several years I have been saving seed and growing them to bulbs to give to friends, which is how I got my bulb. My soil is well fortified with compost, but I have never used fertilizer. Our temperatures seldom fall below 25 degrees. They make sturdy stems which never require staking. Al

If the Lachenalias you're after are in leaf/bloom in spring you shouldn't have a problem. Just let them come to a natural finish and withhold water over the summer. If they've been imported dry (end of our spring) hold them in cool dry over the summer (in soil, usually) then shake out and plant at the time that's right for you. Some of them can be held dormant for one-two years with no problem. If you have a glasshouse - they definitely leaf up and have longer stalks in the reliable warmth (55-60F). Winter wet and active growth with very low frost. Go lightly on any high Nitrogen fertiliser. Wait until the leaves are well up before increasing the amount of water. Excellent air circulation required. They don't mind dappled light but not full dim. L aloides and L bulbifera are probably the easiest. Galtonia - my neighbour grows them beautifully. From my bulbs. Which don't flower for me. She SAYS she does nothing special...

Thank you SO much morz8! Typically, in the past, I have simply put my Galtonia candicans seeds in a sealed envelope and over wintered in a dry, cool place. Very early spring I sprinkle the seeds in my garden and within 3-4 weeks they begin to produce what looks like âÂÂgrassâ shoots⦠the shoots grow between 4 ��" 6 inches by the end of the summer. Late fall I then dig up the soil and have dozens and dozens of âÂÂminiâ Galtonia bulbs. The next year I plant those âÂÂminiâ bulbs and they mature and the foliage does very well however, they do not flower. The third year, I re-plant the then medium sized bulbs and they flower nicely and the bulbs double in size. My goal is to spend this fall/winter speeding up the first year process by growing the seeds inside so that by late winter I have âÂÂminiâ bulbs. I am trying to shave a year off the three year flowering process by tricking the seeds into becoming ready to grow ASAP through this fall/winter. Are you certain that, after spending a few weeks in the cold fridge, that the seeds wonâÂÂt be âÂÂtrickedâ into thinking itâÂÂs early spring once planted?

OMG Marie - I don't want to be a downer, but did you read the negative feedback at Garden Watchdog? The most protracted rant came from a lady who did exactly what you are proposing and sounded like she wanted to go back in time and dope slap that very idea out of her own head by the end of her ordeal. That being said, I HAVE done a group order of Helebores on a smaller scale from SG and it was OK. There were only three of us - Dee, another swapper friend and I. The plants were nice enough, but small as should be expected. Nothing that has inspired me to order from him again, but I wouldn't totally rule it out. I get their emails and laugh at their pricing because whether it is something exotic-ish or as common as Garlic chives he seems to charge the same two pricing structures for everything and presents it with the same huckster patter. Of course he also has some good growing information to impart also. He must really be a character in person.