Dear all, I might elaborate a bit on Boyce's comments for the non-hardy bulbs, here in the Frozen North. The Clivia are getting good sunshine, with only 30 to 50% shade. They don't need as much shading here in winter as they do in summer. We have stopped watering the mature Clivia as well as almost all the Hippeastrum. We have also lowered the temperature settings in the greenhouses to about 50 F for heat and 70 F for the exhaust fans. We stopped feeding in September. The Nerine bowdenii are blooming now, at least one of the clones is (from Rob Potterton). The Nereine undulata are also blooming now, but NN. platypetala and gracilis have finished for the season. All except the platypetala are now quite dry. The platypetala sit in a tray with water almost all year round. The Lachenalia need to have been repotted at least a month or two ago, and now they need cool temperatures, bright sunlight, and regular watering and feeding. The same goes for your Ipheion in pots. They both need feeding too! Jim Shields in cold central Indiana (USA) At 08:58 AM 12/2/2003 -0600, Boyce wrote: >..... >Here in the continental cold upper Midwest of North America a quick check >of the hardy bulbs in containers shows they have rooted in nicely and the >Ipheion and Muscari's are already shooting up growth. >......... >The non-hardy bulbs were brought indoors in late September in order to >miss the first freeze. Most of them are in active growth and I should >start watching for spider mites, etc. pretty soon. They get a periodic >watering with Peters 20-20-20 and I'll topdress with Osmocote later in the >winter. The Hippeastrums, Clivia, Dioon and Plumeria are still >experiencing water reduction ... great companion plants for a single >container in that they require simular watering regimes during the >winter.......... >Best wishes, > >Boyce Tankersley >btankers@chicagobotanic.org ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd. P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Tel. ++1-317-867-3344 or toll-free 1-866-449-3344 in USA Member of INTERNATIONAL CLIVIA CO-OP