pleione hardiness

[sjusovare]

hello
I was wondering, has anyone tried the hardiness of pleiones?
I know my Pln limprichti and formosana alba have proved to be hardy here ( zone 8 ) when protected from rain.
I have not tried the others yet as I do not feel to sacrifice them as long as I do not have more specimen of each, however space in the fridge is beginning to lack 

[Maren]

Hi Julien,

Every November, I throw all my spent compost and rejected pseudobulbs onto my allotment. In the spring I lightly dig over the top layer. There are always pleiones flowering in the spring, but as this is a truly mixed bag, it is not always possible to me to identify them. Not a controlled test, just a bit of fun to see them coming up and the perplexed faces of my neighbours.   But of course they are soon nibbled and bashed by the weather.

[Hristo]

Maren!
What no Leeks!?
As Marianne Toinette would say, 'Let them eat Pleiones' maybe!?

[sjusovare]

hey everyone
Interresting, Maren, I may try to leave a Zeus Weinstein and a Gerry Mundey outside this winter.

[LarsB]

I've also used the method of throwing the spent compast and unidentified bulbs under the rhododendrons. I have well established plants of formosana and Fuego flowering in my garden.

[johanneshoeller]

The following Pleiones are hardy here in Austria, only a little protected from rain:
forrestii, bulbocodioides, pleionoides, scopulorum, hookeriana, limprichtii, formosana alba and some hybrids of these Pleiones.

[Maren]

Hans,

that is very interesting. What do you use to protect your pleiones from rain?

[Eric Locke]

Hans,

that is very interesting. What do you use to protect your pleiones from rain?

Mine have always perished due to either frost or getting over wet. 

Eric

[Pete Clarke]

Julien - these are Rakata (? Shot Silk) bulbs, growing in ordinary garden soil for the last 6-7 years, without any protection & uncared for. The ground is wet & shaded in winter & regularly frosted. They seem to take what ever weather we get without problem & flower well in the spring.

Pete.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

They surely look healthy Pete !! 

[Hristo]

Bravo Pete,
Great to see the boundaries of what can be grown in the open garden being pushed by a few brave individuls!

[LarsB]

Some of us likes living on the edge 

[johanneshoeller]

Sorry for my late reply. I use an ordinary heat-insulation board (styrofoam, 2cm) to protect my Pleiones from rain.