On 17 May 2015, at 19:11, Peter Taggart wrote: > That period of semi-dryness [which serves to maintain plants in drought > mode] so important for bulbs lasts longer in small particle soils than in > granular, when soils are drying out and bulbs are 'dormant' Cyclamen, for example, imbibe moisture via the roots even in dormancy. Try lifting a cyclamen tuber in summer and leaving it on a shelf. It will soon get flabby. Tulips pose another interesting example of how people misinterpret words. It's commonly said that tulips need to be dry in summer, and a fair number of people misinterpret this as meaning a sandy soil. Nothing could be further from the truth; tulips do best in a rather heavy clay-ish soil that goes dry in the summer. Put them in a lean, sandy soil and they won't thrive like they do in a heavier soil. -- Rodger Whitlock Victoria, British Columbia, Canada Z. 7-8, cool Mediterranean climate