.I believe that this depends on the type of bulb in question. Juno Iris, (and to some extent oncos) definitely do better with constricted roots, but they hate to run out of food. Others such as some of the drier growing Muscari, Narcissus species and some Colchicums do much better if crowded and fed. In my opinion the reasons are varied, Crowding and not re potting Nerine bulbs can cause the bulbs to heave up to the surface where they may be subject to temperature fluctuations and therefor be more stimulated to flower... or the lack of root disturbance may be the cause of better flowering.... Air can run down the sides of pots to reach crowded roots which would compliment Jim's argument that small pots may prevent over watering which is undoubtedly true . I have tried over potting and under potting of many types of bulb, as well various watering routines and composts. Apart from Juno Iris I have very few bulbs which I keep very constricted, -probably only about thirty pots out of the couple of thousand varieties which I grow. Also I always give the Junos some room to expand, and send their roots deep. For me, over potting has always been more successful when a plant is able to grow quickly. If temperatures are inadequate or the plant is slow growing I find it is generally best to be under potted. Peter (UK) On 21 November 2014 19:00, James SHIELDS <jshields46074@gmail.com> wrote: > Rimmer and all, > > Most bulbs do not need to be "pot-bound" at all -- they need lots of root > mass! On the other hand, amateurs who consistently over-water plants from > arid lands have a harder time killing such plants if there is little or no > soil in the pot with the roots to retain excess moisture. > > Growing large bulbs in small pots tends to result in "bonsai" bulbs, > depriving the grower of a true appreciation of the plant real beauties. > > Jim S. > > On Fri, Nov 21, 2014 at 12:29 PM, Rimmer deVries <rdevries@comcast.net> > wrote: > > > Often you see the terms “likes to be pot bound” or "keep pot bound” with > > advice for growing bulbs in pots. > > > > is the thought behind these terms have anything to do with the plants > > preferring cramped spaces > > or more to do with the soil mass relative to the root system and how fast > > the roots take up excess moisture in the pot. > > > > if using a fast draining potting media like 80% pumice, do these plants > > still need to be pot bound? > _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/