seedlings of Paramongaia weberbaueri
Kipp McMichael (Thu, 10 Oct 2013 13:28:50 PDT)

Greetings,

Although long brown necks are natural for many deep-growing bulbs, growing with that long, brown neck fully exposed is not so natural - and that's where the problem is, I think. In situ, the neck of the bulb would be surrounded by soil. Moisture from the precipitation that encourages bulb growth, as well as transpired water from the growing itssue itself, would likely soften the brown neck-sheathing while a sheath exposed to air and light remains stiff and tough. A softened sheath is certainly easier for the new growth to expand/split or push out of the way entirely.

-|<ipp