Zantedeschia
Steve Marak (Sat, 17 Jun 2006 10:57:57 PDT)

On Sat, 17 Jun 2006, J.E. Shields wrote:

Jim, I've probably worn this topic out (or maybe that was on another list), but
I'm in NW Arkansas, nominally USDA zone 6, but with winters ranging from 5 to
7 (last several were 7s, nothing below about 5 F/-15 C).

I grow all my Zantedeschias, with 3 exceptions below, outdoors all year, no
protection. Several, including "Flame" and a small-flowered cultivar which
clearly has a lot of Z. rehmanii in it, have been out there for at least 15
years, which includes the odd -20 F/-29 C night. Some of the newer ones,
including "Black Pearl" which went in last year, haven't been through a hard
winter yet, but broke dormancy at about the same time as the older ones.

I'm doing what you did, plenty of water in summer and none besides what nature
provides in winter. Whatever I'm doing right, it's not calculated. I'll be glad
to compare growing conditions, or send you some offsets of the long-term
survivors here, or seeds in late summer.

The exceptions: I can't grow Z. aethiopica outdoors at all, even though it's
supposed to be the hardiest, due to the wildly fluctuating spring temperatures
here. And I recently acquired two species zants from S. Africa which are
unknowns, so I won't risk them outdoors until I have enough to lose a few.

Steve

-- Steve Marak
-- samarak@gizmoworks.com