The onco seedlings I stated last spring have been doing fine just sitting outside in pots of sandy mix sitting on a sand base. We too have had no rain in months so I don't think you need perlite once they have germinated. A friend uses limestone gravel and sand in large potshots excellent results. But do not water before it gets cold. I water the seedlings all year long, because that gives me the healthiest seedlings; they can be kept green twelve months of the year. The trouble comes when I forget that the pots contain different types of growing media. I have a new batch of seed germinating in perlite now, and when leaves show, they’re going to be watered as though I were growing tomatoes, using a tomato fertilizer even, but grown in deep pots, in pure perlite. Here’s a picture of the Iris kirkwoodiae seedlings, grown in perlite, watered and fed constantly. http://s1265.photobucket.com/user/paridevita/… Bob _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/