It probably has a lot to do with my climate, but Veltheimia bracteata has always done very well for me. It was one of my very first South African bulbs, and remains a favorite. I read about it in the Sunset Western Garden book and a couple of specialty bulb books (the HP Bulb book), however they were not to be found locally. I finally tracked one down at Catalog of Unusual Succulents, a mail order cactus & succulent nursery. A short while later, one turned up at Berkeley Horticultural Nursery and I grabbed that one also. The BHN plant had a much nicer plant habit, and a richer pink color to the flower. Both set a few seeds from their own pollen, which ripened during the early summer and sprouted readily in the fall. My plantings were severely damaged during the 1990-1991 freeze because they were all in containers, so I spent a few years building my stock back up again. I have been growing the yellow selection of bracteata for two seasons now, however it was small (only 15 mm in diameter) when I received it - directly from South Africa - and has not bloomed yet. It looks like it should be large enough next year. By all rights it should have bloomed by now, but perhaps the cross-hemisphere jolt set it back. While I have not been able to match Cathy's 18 month seed-to-bloom time, I think I recall some of my more vigorous seedlings blooming in their second or third season. Mine were all grown outdoors, and I tend to leave them crammed in their seedling pots too long. I plant the untreated seeds barely covered in regular potting mix, and start to water in late September/early October, as soon as the nights cool. They sprout easily and completely as long as they are kept out of direct sun. Under shaded, moderate conditions, bracteata seedlings can be persuaded to grow continuously for their first two seasons, which packs a lot of weight on them quickly. Mature bulbs are another story. I have found that my strain is predisposed to a distinct summer dormancy, and they will become rangy if they are forced to remain green. They will also try to bloom in the summer if kept growing, and this bloom is not only poor, but also causes weak blooming the next winter. Veltheimia capensis has been a different story. Here, it seems to be a finicky grower, and lacks vigor. I have not lost any plants, but they are certainly taking their time achieving blooming size. I think the climate may be a tad too cool here for them, because I bought what was supposed to be a blooming size capensis bulb from Guy Wrinkle at least three years ago, and it still puts up two or three leaves each year and seems to just sulk along. I have about 5 seedlings of capensis from Silverhill that I planted two winters ago and they are healthy and progressing nicely, although nowhere near the rate of bracteata. Ken Kehl East S.F. Bay Area, Ca. USDA Zone 9 -2°C to 38°C