Acceptable Oxalis

Jim McKenney jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com
Fri, 01 May 2009 10:40:23 PDT
Dylan, you addressed your question to Christiaan, but I want to butt in
because there seems to be the germ of a misunderstanding in the question
itself. You wrote "if they replace themselves each season they are better
considered as something other than bulbs."

Hardly anyone would say a tulip bulb is not a true bulb, but tulip bulbs
undergo a nearly complete replacement yearly. 

Speaking broadly and very simplistically, all true bulbs contain a corm. The
corm (by which I mean the stem tissue) is the only part of the tulip bulb
which persists from year to year. It is the true (although much compacted)
perennial stem of the tulip plant - the new replacement bulbs are formed
along this stem. The tulip bulbs one digs in June are not the tulip bulbs
one planted the previous fall.  

Does that help make it any more sensible?  


Jim McKenney
jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com
Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, 39.03871º North, 77.09829º West, USDA zone
7, where the first peonies of the year are already gone.
My Virtual Maryland Garden http://www.jimmckenney.com/
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