[I seem to recall] Jane wrote > I always wonder why dwellers in the southwestern deserts of the US > (notably Phoenix!) don't use oncocyclus irises as bedding plants. I tried Oncocyclus here. I built a raised bed with screened granite. I planted them in the fall when they arrived from the iris society. They sprouted and grew the first spring. I covered them the first summer, ensuring good air circulation, and removed the cover in late fall. They never came up the next spring. I poked around and found them all dead. The people in the iris society concluded they got too much winter rain here. We average 8" / 200mm rain per annum, 60% during the summer monsoon July-September. Leo Martin Zone 9? Phoenix Arizona USA _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@mailman1.ibiblio.org http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/