How dry is dry?

[George R Stilwell, Jr.]

Donna,

They will probably do alright in spite of your care. How come they are
dormant? Mine are still growing like crazy. They shouldn't go dormant
'till late August unless you let them dry out.

Anyway, it's the winter that matters with new seedlings. That's where
most of the losses take place and why using the frig to get a second
growth pays off.

They don't want to be wet when dormant. On the other hand, bone dry isn't
the best either. Maybe you should water them every 7.86 days except when
it's raining move it out to 11.78 days. Or you could put a moisture probe
in the pots and hook it up to a sprinkler system.

There's so much control in the frig., both temp and moisture are perfect.
Just separate the tuberlets and put them in ziplocks with some just damp
spagnum. It's so much easier than keeping up with the rain and drought.
And, it takes practically no room. On top of that, the marker stakes
won't get dug up by the squirrels, so you'll still know which is which.

Ray
<GRSJr at Juno.com>