I wanted to chime in and say how much I enjoyed this thread and appreciate the information and ideas kicking around. I am in the planning stages (which means the idea has been floating around in my head, nothing else) for a bulb bed at my "new" garden. We've been here for two years and I bought a few hardy bulbs with me I was successful with at my last place and have lost them here. I'm pretty sure it's our year-round rain that has done them in and clay-y soil. I'm hoping to do some type of sand bed and rig up a cover for it to keep it dry when needed. I've got the standard critter issues (voles, mice, rabbits) and have plans for wire/mesh around, atop, etc. I REALLY like MarySue's double-pot solution. This seems brilliant to me. So easy to be able to access what you need to and everyone nearby needn't be disturbed, etc. It's not just redwoods! I learned the hard way that once you begin planting beneath a mature set of spruce trees, if you sprinkle even a minimum amount of water around, here come those feeder roots. I had a heck of a time figuring out what would work in deep shade under two very closely grown 30' spruce trees that had been limbed up nicely, but were very thirsty. I had to abandon the thought of arisaema after losing some treasures and work with what will tolerate massive root competition. Interestingly, erythronium kicked butt there. Jane, I cannot imagine doing what you are doing with those beds. My hat is off. Bridget On Sun, Aug 28, 2022 at 8:26 PM John Wickham via pbs < pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> wrote: > I fear the nearby Zauchneria, which has formed dense mats under the > nearby shrubs. The California bulbs may appreciate that companionship, > though. > Fascinating to hear about redwood roots. > > On Sunday, August 28, 2022 at 04:41:32 PM PDT, Robert Parks via pbs < > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> wrote: > > Wow! Redwoods are crafty, so far the only thing that has been invading > pots > are Psoralea roots (Koolaid Bush)...the last thing I needed when lifting > pots of miniature Oxalis with bulbs similar in size to the nitrogen fixing > nodules on the tree roots. > > [image: width=] > < > http://avg.com/email-signature/… > > > Virus-free.http://www.avg.com/ > < > http://avg.com/email-signature/… > > > <#DAB4FAD8-2DD7-40BB-A1B8-4E2AA1F9FDF2> > > On Sun, Aug 28, 2022 at 4:35 PM Mary Sue Ittner via pbs < > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> wrote: > > > Like Jane I once had some free range beds and they were nice for a year > > or two and then there were mostly a lot of some things with other things > > gone. My solution was to replant and this time plant in plastic pots > > placed in plastic pots of the same size with gravel/sand around the > > pots. Then I can lift up a single pot or two that needs repotting or to > > share. This was freeing as if I don't get around to repotting usually > > something still flowers. And the pots don't need as much water and the > > soil temperature is better than the pots exposed to sun. And I planted > > two or three different things in each pot (with different storage organs > > so I could tell them apart). I could still have thems which have done > > really well without getting out of hand. I even have Cyclamen in these > > pots that I haven't repotted in a long time, especially since they often > > start flowering before I get around to it. My biggest problem has been > > that I live in the redwoods and the roots travel to better soil and > > moisture. Before I realized I needed to check every year they had > > created nests (sometimes taking up to 1/2 of the pot) with bulbs resting > > on the top with no soil underneath. And if I repotted with better soil, > > that pot would be targeted. Redwoods are very smart. So every year I > > have to pull the pots out to check for roots and put them back. But that > > shouldn't be a problem for John. > > > > Mary Sue > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > pbs mailing list > > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > > Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> > > PBS Forum latest: > > https://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbsforum/index.php/… > > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> > PBS Forum latest: > https://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbsforum/index.php/… > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… > Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> > PBS Forum latest: > https://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbsforum/index.php/… > _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net> PBS Forum https://…