After getting some rain the last couple of weeks, we can hope to see some late season flowers. The hardy Lycrois are blooming, with L. squamigeraq already finished and LL. chinensis, longituba, and sprengeri getting a good start. A weedy Scilla, maybe S. autumnalis? is in bloom. Crinum variabile is now starting to bloom, and the plants of C. [variabile x bulbispermum] are on their 3rd set of scapes. Both these are in irrigated outdoor beds, so have not suffered so heavily from the drought. (Our irrigation system is on a well.) In the greenhouse, no sign of most Haemanthus flowering yet, but in the lath house, Haemanthus albiflos has started to bloom. Also in the lath house, one Scadoxus membranaceus (#1667) is in bloom. This one has the typical 4 bronze-colored bracts enclosing the umbel. I have another accession of Scadoxus "membranaceus" (#1021) that bloomed a couple weeks ago. It is atypical, and I wonder what it really is? The inflorescence has not 4 broad, bronzy colored bracts but 6 or 7 narrow, upright, bright plain green bracts. At first glance, the plants look otherwise identical. I thought 4 bracts was diagnostic for S. membranaceus. What do I have in #1021? Still in the lath house, Nerine krigei is starting to bloom, and there is one scape on N. laticoma. Caliphruria korsakoffii has another scape up and flowering. Arisaema yunnanense aridum is blooming. This Arisaema spends the winter in its pot in a fridge, cold but above freezing. In spring it goes out to the lath house. It sees to be doing rather well under this regimen. That seems to be it for now. Jim Shields in no longer so very hot and not quite so very dry central Indiana ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Lat. 40° 02.8' N, Long. 086° 06.6' W