Roy Herold wrote: > Interesting that Telos Rare Bulbs lists E. tuolumnense as Z4-8. Or is > this a copy of those oh-so-reliable Dutch descriptions? Careful. Diana is the most scrupulous grower I have encountered in my own life as a grower. My Zone is 6; I have not met E. tuolumnense in Zone 4. But it crosses my mind that Erythronium spp., like many other plants, may retain genes for super-hardiness from the ancient past, when their ancestors survived a series of ice ages. If I lived in Zone 4, I'd try burying the bulb deeply in granular, friable soil. Clay might be fatal; so might a muggy summer. > Also, are erythroniums self compatible, or does it take two to get seed? Aha. Comments, anyone? Sensing a precipice, I would not like to generalize; but for sure, many liliaceous species are capable of self-pollination. Lilium and Erythronium among them. I have the impression that fertility mightbe less than from cross-pollination of seed-grown plants of the same species. I have never tried to start a population of Erythronium from a single blooming plant. I belong to the "sow heavily" school. From the mature plants that result, I get lots of capsules full of good seed. Aha again. Here is Ian Young, back in 2007, showing us some E. hendersonii x (he says) californicum hybrids. http://srgc.org.uk/bulblog/log2007/… Evidently where he lives in Scotland, hendersonii and californicum bloom at the same time. My californicum are still in bud. Our mental palm trees are still being thrashed intermittently by real corn snow and howling winds. Paige Woodward