I find it very hard to understand fugacious flowers. All that effort for a couple of hours of show, and it is not as though they just did the minimum necessary. Often they are incredibly intricate in colour, shape, markings, scent. I guess they must grow in an area with a guaranteed sufficiency of pollinators. I much prefer flowers that hang around hopefully waiting. Like trilliums. John Gyer reports that the flower opens, then the pollen ripens and two weeks later the stigma is receptive. Then the flower remains open another week or so to receive pollen. Or snowdrops. I should keep track one year. It seems that I have had Galanthus woronowii in bloom from early January to late March. Those are the ones outside my kitchen window so I see them every day. I don't know how long the other species out in the garden last. Certainly they all give good garden value. Diane Whitehead Victoria, British Columbia, Canada maritime zone 8, cool Mediterranean climate mild rainy winters, mild dry summers