Calochortus Seed judgement call
Joyce Miller (Tue, 30 Jul 2002 11:45:00 PDT)

Dear All,
Two weeks ago, I dug some Calochortus (pussy ear type) bulbs from
an undeveloped wild area behind my sister's home, in Bend, OR. Although
the flowers were in full bloom, a few with a seed pods and a few with buds
showing, I found the ground at bulb level was bone dry. In fact, the stalk
was already brown and dry. Just below soil level, a bulbil had formed. I
managed to salvage 3 bulbs and about 5 flower stems. The flowers wilted
immediately, but revived as soon as they were put in water. I gathered a
small amount of just damp ground from my sister's garden into a zip lock
bag, stuck the stalk ends into the damp soil, and closed the zip top as far
as it would go. Now, two weeks later, the seed pods seem to be maturing
and drying. One bulbil has expanded in size. At this point I do not have
enough confidence to cut the dry stalks and let the seed pod dry on its
own. And, how should I treat the bulbil? What say my bettors?

Kind regards, Joyce Miller

Joyce E. Miller
Zone USDA 9A Summer highs 100+degrees F for several to many days.Winter
lows 27 degrees F