I don't remember exactly how long it took for my 'Lucifer' to come up the first spring I planted it but 2-3 weeks rings a bell. Mine also flowered that first year. It's been coming up ever since (it's at 18" right now). Simon

I recently planted papery black seeds from both an Amaryllis bloom and a Aztec lily bloom, even though I've read on a couple of webpages that the Aztec lily does not set a seed pod. Wrong! I planted them as soon as they started opening on the bloom stalk, just like in nature where they would blow in the wind to a spot on the earth and be moistened by the rain. I planted them close together in little plastic pots, the $1.29 per plant size you buy at the nursery, sticking the seeds halfway into a topping of sand (1/4" inch) over some potting soil. Then I moistened the little pots until thoroughly wet and popped into ziploc bags and zipped shut, putting the bags close to a sunny window. I put the date on the bag when I started this. The Aztec lily shoots came up on the average of 10 days....I now have 68 long, slender shoots I have transplanted to larger pots. Also the amaryllis seed took a week longer...but I now have about 18 little shoots up from them. Guess in a couple of years I will see what colors/combinations will come of these surprise seedpods. Gardening is always surprising. take care, firefly

I call bull...unless pre-cooled, they won't grow other than rooting out (which they should do anyway) without a winter chill period...assuming they're varieties that require chilling (which encompass most of the fall bulbs..and many daffs and crocus). If that were so, how do you think that a daff or crocus would dare live over the summer in the ground. Bulbs tolerate being dug up and stored dry, they do not require it given proper growing conditions. And point of fact, the depth that you should plant daffodils (around six inches), the soil is no longer hot at that point. Even sand is typically cool at that level. Now crocus on the other hand....shallow planting, but they thrive on hot dry conditions during their dormant period. The only worry I would have is that early planting gives a longer period for squirrels and such pests to dig them up.

I direct sowed poppies in early March and they've been blooming for a couple weeks. Shirley poppies. A few orientals sprouted and are putting up shoots, but I see no buds and no flowers yet. Larkspur was wintersown and is now blooming. Perennials are sown here in the fall for summer blooms. They spend the winter hanging on through snow and frosts and two months of really cold weather. I did this last year with Rudbeckia and have one plant that's been blooming for a month now. Lots of buds on the others. Like Cameron, my plants will be in full bloom within a month. Perhaps your neighbors purchase their seedlings rather than start from scratch. I know a lot of people here have beautiful blooming gardens right now. But I've seen them throw down several hundred dollars at the garden center for those blooms. For me, I enjoy watching things grow from seed to bloom. While I do buy some plants, most perennials and annuals are started from seed. With each passing year, I'll have to start fewer plants thanks to reseeders and divisions.