My experiences with A belladonna echo Judy's in that it has persisted and blooms for several years under the eves in my school garden in Chappaqua NY. Usually one or two bloom each summer. Right now they are in full leaf, leaves didnt really do much until after winter this year because it was so cold there was no chance for them to grow out very far before what ever growth they had was frosted back into oblivion. I think the wall provides the warmth the bulbs need to keep from freezing solid, and the area is a bit dryish in summer because of the eves, though not excessively so. If it was a bulb that could be planted deeper perhaps it would survive in the open garden but it seems to want to be near the surface. I have a seedling that is also doing well near the house wall and may plant out more later on this fall at home from several pbs seedlings I have been raising. Now my experince with Crinum bulbispermum is completely different, that appears to be bone hardy here in the open garden at home. I have them in 6 different gardens and I dont think I have lost a single one in the last two horrid winters in my home garden, though an x powellii in the school garden appears to have finally died out this past winter. One is in bloom right now with 2 spikes, I think the others (all raised from seed) are large enough that some more may flower later on. It probably is a good idea to keep the seedlings in pots for their first winter and let them dry down then plant them out their second or third year, when the bulbs are about as big as some tulips or such. Ernie DeMarie Briarcliff Manor NY Z7/6 where we also have had plenty of rain since last night. -----Original Message----- From: Judy Glattstein <jgglatt@gmail.com> To: pbs <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org> Sent: Mon, Jun 15, 2015 2:01 pm Subject: [pbs] Amaryllis belladonna in Connecticut When we lived in Wilton, Connecticut about 2 decades ago I grew and flowered Amaryllis belladonna. It was planted under the rather wide roof eaves close to the wall of the house. Flowered each year. Moved to New Jersey, brought it with us. (Mind you, the first several wardrobe cartons off the moving truck had shrubs, and I'd spent the whole summer moving "community pots" - large black two-handled nursery tubs with a small shrub, perennials, ground cover, and bulbs all in a "happy family planting.") Anyhow, even though New Jersey is south of Connecticut it also has clay soil and not the divine, high organic, moist but well-drained soil, the holy grail of gardeners, that I had in Wilton. So yes, I successfully grew Amaryllis belladonna on the east coast. But I think it was more the site than my expertise as a gardener. Sigh. Judy in hot and humid New Jersey where last night's electrical storm dumped 1.3 inches of rain and given us steam bath conditions _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/