Hi Jim, I am glad you are now having success with these good value plants. You repeat some great tips for establishing them. It sounds as if you are finding some really good new cultivars in the US. I don't want to pick any arguments over this, (I know that my knowledge of plant anatomy is not good enough to win), but just to put a thought to those people who *do* know the differences between different forms of geophytic plants. These messages, along with others, refer to Crocosmia both as having "bulbs" and "corms". Colloquially speaking I am quite happy with "bulbs", but I am sure constant interchanging of terms will only serve to confuse those people who don't properly understand the differences, and those who struggle with technical English. For those out there (*and there will be many*) who do not know the difference, a corm is a stem surrounded with modified leaves eg Crocus, Gladiolus, Crocosmia. A bulb is a compressed stem (basal plate) with a modified leaf or leaves sitting on top and roots growing below, eg an onion, Tulip or daffodil. Peter (UK) On Mon, Aug 1, 2011 at 8:20 PM, James Waddick <jwaddick@kc.rr.com> wrote: > > Crocosmia have been hardy in this climate, but only with some > advance special care. If dormant bare root corms are planted directly > in the ground, they are almost guaranteed to fail. I will not do this > again. Plants growing in soil in full growth will do much better > especially if planted early and given some protection their first > winter. Plants in 4 to 6 inch/gallon pots are ideal in size. If > blooming size the chances get even higher. > > If dormant bulbs are the only option, plant them in a good > potting mix in large pots, water carefully and let them grow for at > least a year including a second growing /sprouting season. This > insures that the bulbs really will sprout. Then plant in the final > place. > > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ >