I don't know what the year round climate is in Argentina where they are native to. But I grew up about 5 miles away from the wild fields where Scott Ogden, author of Garden Bulbs for the South and who now lives in the same area as well, says that the triploid version first appeared from bulbs imported from Argentina and abandoned back in the 1800s. I wish I knew the specific area where this is because it would be quite the sight to see them all in full bloom. Also, the city of Austin, Texas has almost but not quite overtaken that whole area with developments. Anyway, Austin gets about 32 inches of rain per year mostly spread out throughout the year. There is a peak in May and another peak in October, but no month averages less than about 2 inches. In practice however, there can be a month or two or more with no rain followed by periods of lots of rain, randomly through the year. It's relentlessly hot (mid-90s F.) and fairly humid (50-70%) all summer long. Winters are very similar to those in California, except for the occasional arctic blast that can drop the nighttime temperatures into the teens Fahrenheit for a night or three. This can happen once a winter or so. (Which is why oranges and avocados can't be grown all over Texas like they can in California. Unless you can find those obscure extremely cold-resistant varieties...). So I don't think Robert is wrong in watering his pot all year long, even when dormant. --Lee Poulsen Pasadena, California, USDA Zone 10a On Sep 7, 2007, at 12:08 PM, robertwerra@pacific.net wrote: > To all, Rightly or wrongly, I water my pot of Rhodophiala all year > long. Bob Werra