Ba-Ba-Ba..Babiana
Mary Sue Ittner (Thu, 19 Feb 2004 08:49:28 PST)

Dear Jamie,

No one has responded to your Babiana question on the list although they may
have done it privately. The nice thing about growing bargains is if they
act as annuals you don't feel bad.

The Babiana stricta hybrids which may be what you have are very easy plants
for me. They do well in the ground and have increased nicely. They'd be
worth trying in Zone 8 I expect. The ones I had in the ground in 1990 when
we got down to 19 F (-7 C) came back. They retain their leaves a long time
so by planting now you may be able to keep them growing long enough to
develop new corms for next year. You should think of them as bulbs changing
hemispheres. If they survive they may take a bit of time to get adjusted
and bloom again.

They grow deep and do better with containers that are deep it has been my
experience. The corms are small so you wouldn't think that by looking at
them. I have mine planted in the ground, in large wooden boxes, and in deep
plastic pots. They are doing really well in my raised beds (9 inch deep
plastic pots submerged in a gravel-sand plunge). They do best in sun, but
if it gets hot early for you move them to shade so you can keep them
growing as long as possible this year. I had read they were great container
plants and that wasn't my experience, at least not in shallow pots. Now I
expect a lot of people to write that they grow them well in 2 or 4 inch pots.

Mary Sue