Hot-summer Tulipa and other species?
Jane McGary (Fri, 24 Jun 2005 18:13:47 PDT)

I'd encourage Leo Martin to try any Tulipa species at all in Phoenix. To
protect the bulbs from summer water, plant them in rapidly draining soil
(perhaps you have it anyway) and PLANT THEM DEEP. This will moderate the
temperature both winter and summer.

In fact, if for some reason I was forced to live in Phoenix, I would at
least have a stupendous bulb garden! Rodger Whitlock's suggestion about
Oncocyclus irises is excellent. In fact, the Aril [Iris] Society
International is centered in the U.S. Southwest.

Even though many tulips come from continental areas with cold winters, I
think almost all of them experience very hot summers. I should think that a
climate as dry as that of Phoenix would mean cool, even cold nights, but
perhaps its well-known atmospheric pollution keeps the temperature higher
than it would be normally.

I also encourage Leo to join the North American Rock Garden Society
(http://www.nargs.org/), since we have a great many members in the Rocky Mountain
and Southwest regions. The coming international meeting in Utah (2006)
should be inspiring for anyone from the arid West.

Jane McGary