Good luck with H.papilio! I can't wait to see one flower either, mine will soon be 4 years old but they are still small! Most of the first lot of hipps I grew from seed are not as good as the second lot, I don't know if our very chilly summer 2008 held them back or if it was the species which are more difficult. It was too cold to put them in a greenhouse even so I kept them inside, by September they had barely grown but most are fairly slow for a start.
Putting the seedlings in compost is easy, just make a hole with something like a pencil then ease the root in while holding the leaf. After gently pushing the compost around the bulb give them a light spray to settle the compost around the roots. If sowing them like lilies works for you then stick with it.
