Paul: This is something similar to a paper I read on Colchicum seeds. Theory was that when they were released from the plant there were not fully mature and did so over the next months at a warm temperature. Arnold On 01/04/14, Paul Cumbleton wrote: Lee your comments about the need for the seed some species to have a period of warmth after being shed is correct. Daubenya aurea - and indeed all the winter growing bulbs from South Africa - fall into this category. They are shed as summer begins and sit around in the hot sun all summer before germinating in the autumn when the rains arrive and the temperature falls. They actually require this period of heat - when shed they are still not fully ripe and the period of warmth completes the ripening process; this is called "after-ripening". Storing such seed in the fridge over the summer will mean they fail to complete their ripening process and are thus very likely to fail to germinate when sown in autumn. So I always store the seed of my winter-growing South Africans in a warm, dry place over the summer - often sitting in the sun on a glasshouse shelf, or at least in a warm room in the house. Paul Cumbleton UK Zone 8