I bought a bunch of anemone & ranunculus corms for fall planting, beautiful varieties! I also bought the expensive Italian ranunculus. I've been so excited to plant them for gorgeous blooms this spring but ended up so busy I haven't had time to plant them until just the other day- in February!!! :( :( has anyone succeeded planting them this late & still had blooms?? I'm in Florida & our day temps are already heating up. I'm sick to my stomach for planting them so late! I tried finding info on the web about planting them in spring but this info pertains to ppl who garden in northern climates like TN, KY & further north. I'm just not sure they'll bloom for me being in zone 9. I don't think they require chill but I know they do better during cooler weather. I'm so disappointed in myself! I know they'll come up next year but that's so far away :( anyone planted them this late with success ??

It is definitely lesser celandine. Removing the flowers won't help much since it spreads predominantly by tubercles rather than seed. You are very lucky it hasn't taken over your garden. It's all over mine, which incidentally is damp and clayey. It is ephemeral and will disappear come summer. As Carol says it's now Ficaria verna, not a Ranunculus.

You unearthed the ranculus bulb and it was healthy or was it the freesia? If it was ranculus and the bulbs look fine, I would keep the soil moist, but not wet (top can dry a bit, feel down with your finger and see how wet the soil is under the top layer) and then put in a slightly warmer or sunnier place. Until roots start growing the only loss of water will be from evaporation so you will need to check the soil before watering. I believe ranculus like heat and might wait for warmer conditions to emerge.

They might just lie dormant until it's cool enough to start growing. Hopefully they won't rot in the pots. I would not water and wait until fall to check for growth before watering again.