They're very local to me as well! I waited since last year to do my amaryllis order from them this year. It was my first time ordering from Easy to Grow Bulbs.com. The box was sent out immediately via Fed Ex Ground (came the next day sent) and the bulbs were beautiful. No red blotch on ANY amaryllis bulbs.

Some sizes like Melusine were smaller than I expected but they certainly were the measurements given on the website and some bulbs were much larger than what I'd expected. [My freebie bonus bulbs were ranunculus. Fyi.] Their amaryllis prices are 'top of the line' but the bulbs I got were excellent so I feel ok paying that price for now. This was a splurge I'd saved up and planned for. Normally I'd expect these bulbs to range in price from $9-13 dollars in a store like Armstrongs, and probably the exotics I got on the high end so the pricing was fair to me. Especially since the bulb HEALTH was GREAT. PLUS I knew the bulbs would have minimal transport time and its a local company so again-- happy to do business with them.

[I don't know if you remember but a couple years ago, local Home Depots and Lowes were ordering bulbs from an operation called "The California Bulb Company". The most incredible bulbs came packaged under those labels and for low bottom pricing too. Great bulbs for our area AND the cheapest and best quality amaryllis bulbs locally. They would sell Papillo bulbs under $6 at Home Depot. Well.... its all changed I think 2 years ago. I think HD went with a dutch production company for cheaper prices and now only has been carrying the boxed 'common color' bulbs. All their other bulbs are imports through a dutch owned company as well. To make a long story short, I did ask Easy To Grow Bulbs if they were the new incarnation of the California Bulb Company and they said they are. Its just a shame they are no longer in our stores. At least as far as I've seen up to last year. I'm just glad they're still HERE and selling us some more unusual bulbs.]

As of Sunday, none of the Walter Andersons nor Mission Hill Nursery had gotten their amaryllis bulbs in. They usually carry slightly more unusual bulbs so I can't compare what they will be carrying with what was sent to me. Crop quality seems to vary year to year I've noticed. I really want a giant Rilona and maybe a Black Pearl if they have it at WA so I'm very curious as to their order coming in... I call every couple days because it will be in any day now most likely.

Armstrong's has gotten their amaryllis bulbs in and the two I visited were not carrying any (what I term) 'exotics' this year besides some basic doubles. Last year was a big surprise when they had Chico and La Paz and maybe one other ...but I guess they didn't sell well since I scooped up a number of lovely bulbs at half off late October (that store was closing for remodeling though...) Those bulbs did very well for me certainly! As spectacular if not more so than their photos. I am really enjoying these 'spider type' (my own made up word) amaryllis.

Today I made it to a Walmart and for some reason they had a box of the 32+cm amaryllis jumbo bulbs marked half off for 3.50 each. I scooped up five nice looking ones. I have NO idea how they have their bulbs in and it looks like that bulb box had been there a while!!! There were only a handful left on clearance. And yet some of the nurseries haven't even gotten theirs in. Different distributors I guess. These have a little red blotch on them but I'm keeping them away and will toss em once the season is over with. I couldn't pass by that pricing though on those jumbo bulbs and they looked decent too!

If you're interested in hyacinths I think the best deal going is Home Depot who is carrying a fabulous variety 'Lady Derby' which is not as fussy about her chilling as some others. I easily chill these (potted up and moistened soil) in the fridge and they were ready before the 12 week recommended chilling time and did fabulous. Some hyacinths are a tad more sassy and don't force as easily but even Old House Gardens rates this one as easy to force and you can't beat Home Depot's pricing on the 10 packs at under 7 bucks (and they will go on sale. No one buys hyacinths at home depots anymore and their boxes are all still pretty full as of this weekend.) However to enjoy them in January you do want to get them in the fridge NOW for their 3 month siesta.

I haven't tried anything except amaryllis from Easy to Grow Bulbs (and the box was well packed too.) I think he has some good tazettas but I REALLY like the selection for our coastal So Cal area from Old House Gardens because they buy (as I believe so does Easy To Grow Bulbs.com-- they just don't carry as big a selection,) from "Bill the Bulb Baron" who is an institution in No. Cal. and has been doing his own hybridizing and maintenance of fabulous fabulous hardy easy no-maintenance for us multi-flower narcissus (actually I am not sure if they fall in the category of 'tazetta'... I mean varieties like ErliCheer (the best and most spectacular comes-back-with-no-care-for-us) When you read the Old House Gardens catalog or website, look for listings on the multi flowering narcissus that say 'fat bulbs from California' and its likely a Bulb Baron product which means fabulous quality and likely a great naturalizer for us.

Surprisingly-- and I've played around a lot with every variety catalog or local, with your 'basic larger daffodils' like single blooms whites to yellows, full trumpets to open faced shallow trumpets, the Home Depot classic bag of daffodils is the earliest bloomer and will come back for several years if planted in an area which gets good summer water and stays a tad shadier and tad moister (excellent drainage needed of course.) I can't tell you how much money I feel I've wasted on other big single daffodils that say they're earlier or better for our zone but the Home Depot or generic yellow trumpet really just beat them all out. Ice Follies probably coming in second, very common here and elsewhere.

Oh-- I noticed Easy To Grow Bulbs is now selling Giant White Squill. This is from another somewhat local grower (farther north and inland but still... I think their website is giantwhitesquill.com Google it...) who is FABULOUS. Gentry Experimental Farm I believe their name is... I can't recommend this bulb enough for coastal So. Cal. It is SPECTACULAR. It has brought me such joy-- I have about 2 dozen now and I would have more if I had better space for them. They're sold locally at Walter Andersons and Armstrongs have even been carrying them in the past. Or if you order a mess you might even be able to drive up and pick them up yourself. LOVE LOVE LOVE. We are soooooooo lucky to have them here.

Also I highly recommend Watsonia if you haven't tried it and Easy To Grow Bulbs has the best selection of colors I have seen ANYWHERE. They are a spectacular bulb for our climate. And impossible to find with this kind of selection. It breaks my heart I couldn't fit them in the yard this year. I have them down on my calendar to get next year because I LOOOOOOOOVE them. Better than gladiolus in my opinion for keeping on the stalk outside and the hummingbirds love em. My favorite is Ablaze which has a subtle purple throat and a nice tomato red color. Really neat combo you can't tell in the photo. That is available in stores too (but usually the first to sell out) if you want a handful to try first. If you haven't tried Watsonia and you're local-- go for it. Mine come back with no care whatsoever and get stronger each year.

Sorry for rattling on!

I ordered tritonias, watsonias, and babianas from Easytogrow. I can't wait to get them! Until I started looking around on Gardenweb I mainly purchased the typical bulbs availble at Home Depot and Lowe's......Tulips, crocus, runnuclus. My runnuculus have already sprouted but the tulips and crocus that I potted in the fridge haven't :(

I picked up some $4 paperwhites at Wal-Mart that are sprouting...I'm so happy! I didn't see any amaryllis though. From now on I'm going to stick to bulbs that are recommended for this area. No more wasted tulips for me!

Well, I wish the Giant White Squill were good for my area...the bulbs are monsters, but they are winter growers and they would have zero chance for me.....too bad they don't have anything except hybrids on the Hippeastrum front....although the Chico is a nice one and if it is actually just a selection of cybister then maybe I'll go for it. Thanks for the web site in any event :o) Dan

Blue Bonsai: The Giant White Squill (their website is whitesquill.com) is really absolutely incredibly fabulous. [I'm also noticing they have an Arizona address now! I wonder if they moved the whole operation or what happened?!] And I'm sorry that really only us zone 10-ers can probably enjoy them, but hey-- you grow a lot that we can't so it all evens out, right?? :)

Calimoss: Oh those all look like fabulous selections! Give up on the tulips. They're difficult (due to length of time necessary to chill, see bulb.com for charts they at least used to have up...) to force (in general) for us. Trader Joes usually carries them in pots for a few dollars when in bloom ...so much less trouble and expense if that's what you need. I do enjoy forcing the hyacinths because there is a lot less time and effort involved and the bulbs are more successful and I've had some going for five years now. So you can do it year after year and they're a piece of cake to keep if you can store them in pots on the north side of the house for the summer. Definitely worth it because good potted hyacinths are more challenging to find than tulips.

Yah gotta love the basic Ziva paperwhite. It smells like poo (to my nose and some others) but hey its early and when its outside its fine. :) Seriously though: Do yourself a favor and get some Erlicheer. FABULOUS sweet light fragrance, the flowers look like a miniature bouqet of ivory roses and they will come back here very vigorously for decades. I have a patch that is at least 10 years old. I think it was started in 91 in all honesty. You can force them in pots easily (more so than many other cutivars) and even in water. But plant them outside so you can enjoy next year. GREAT GREAT cut flowers too. Really last in the vase. Can't say enough about them. I think they're one of the most overlooked cultivars for our area. Write the name down for next year! Erlicheer! :D

I've ordered from them several times and been very happy with what I've received. Their prices aren't rock bottom but then their quality is extra nice with excellent bulb size and firmness. The boxes are packed well and I've never had a mistake in my order.

(I heard from a friend about a mix up with an order that was placed by a customer near Easy to Grow Bulb's warehouse. Seems the customer's emails weren't getting through and when the people at East to Grow Bulbs found out that this customer had been waiting, they got in the car and hand delivered the order to her door! I doubt they'd do that for someone in AZ but still that's pretty rare these days.)

While I like a deal as well as the next person, my time and the end results matter, too. If I were to add up all the "deals" I've bought that turned into weak displays, wrong colors or entirely wrong bulbs, well I'd rather not waste my time with that. It's hard enough to find time to be in the garden as it is. I guess I believe you get what you pay for.

Oh, one other thing. Many of the bulbs from Easy to Grow Bulbs come from the Flower Fields in Carlsbad, so you know they're going to grow well in our climate. The website mentions this connection and I confirmed it with a nice guy I talked with at the company (John). If you haven't seen the Flower Fields - go! The color in April is just wonderful.

And finally a tip about paperwhites and the scent of Zivas; if you don't like Ziva's smell (and many people don't) try some of the other tazettas like Golden Dawn and Chinese Sacred lilies. Much sweeter fragrance.

Jillian

Here is a link that might be useful: Other Paperwhites

Iwalani, You are supposed to tell me that it is not that great and don't worry about it....not that it is just fabulous!!! I grow some Meditteranean plants over the winter like Arum and Helicodiceros muscivorus and Dracunculus canariensis, but these are all much smaller plants for pots that the monster squill. During the summer I have 20 pound tubers of Amorphophallus and Crinum outside, but they go dormant for the winter and don't have to be dealt with.....oh well, would have been nice.....I do think I'm going to buy one of the H. cybister though as that looks really unique :o) Dan

Blue Bonsai: Heh. Sorry! :) I just love mine though. You sound highly dedicated and anyone who can grow Amorphophallus would easily grow this squill. They are big but not THAT big... You could easily grow it in a 10 gallon or 15 gal EASY. Possibly smaller. I am not sure how extensive their roots are. I think you should totally go for it. Although it really needs to grow over winter...

The cybisters are FABULOUS. Love love love em. My La Paz is doing a repeat bloom now for some reason. So I won't be forcing it this winter I guess :)

[And double everything Jillian said-- especially about the bargain bulbs-- couldn't agree more!]