12/20   Do tulip or iris bulbs last more than one season?  I bought a bunch
        of bulbs and I'm planting them.  I'm wondering if I'll have do to
        it over again next year because they will all die.  Thanks.
        \_ tulips don't naturalize in the Bay Area, it doesn't get cold
           enough.  Irises might.  Daffodils do.  If you want, you can dig
           up your tulip bulbs and put them in the refrigerator for a month
           and re-plant them.  -tom
           \_ tom is right about tulips -- they require a deep freeze
                       \_ axiom 2?
              to bloom (around here, one has to refrigerate them for 6-8
              weeks before planting).  they can last another season around
              here if you let the tulips bloom, and then wait until their
              leaves wither after their blooming period (this is when nutrients
              store up in the bulb and is valuable).  Then, you dig them
              up and store them in a cool, dry, dark place until fall, when
              you once again, refrigerate/chill them, and start over.  You
              don't, fortunately, have to do this with irises, which do
              naturalize quite nicely in the Bay Area (but every couple of
              years, irises prefer some "thinning out" -- otherwise they
              don't rebloom very well).  If you want bulbs
              that naturalize well, I second tom's recommendation of daffodils,
              and I add a recommendation for narcissus (paperwhites), which
              do not require a deep freeze, are low maintenance, and
              bloom readily throughout the winter months (mine are blooming
              right now, and there are more of them than last year).  --chris