Mary Sue et. al. I have found that you should start watering carefully in September. A few bulbs show interest in starting growth by the end of August. These, I start watering just as soon as I can see just the hint of green. I am "developing" my record keeping system by logging the date of leaf emerging and when the flower scape first appears. This information guides me as to when to increase watering. I fully agree with Lee and others about applying a carefully alloted amount of water throughout the year. In nature, "rani" can and does happen at unscheduled times. I never "soak" my So. Africans. Be very careful. I am VERY convinced about the above information. I think that you would get simmilar information from Silverhill Seeds. Doug Westfall