I've been biting my tongue, reluctant to post what I see as a logical expectations. I must warn that the foregoing may upset some, as I present an idea apparently foreign to many gardeners. Please don't get mad. If you disagree, then I'd love to hear your reasoning.
We are in agreement that Joe's L. sargentiae was a debacle. It was inexcusable, but after the fact, they sent more than just a replacement for their error.
Regarding the "small" L. taliense bulbs, I really thought that my last post:
When my L. taliense (the so called Kaichen variety) had 22 blooms, the bulb was only about 3/4 inch greater in diameter than a golf ball. First blooms on L. callosum come when the bulb is nickel sized!
would gently get the message across, but I guess not: surely, no one should expect species bulbs to be hybrid sized. We are comparing apple, oranges, mangoes and pineapples here, not apples and apples. They are not the same, nor are individual species lilies the same as each other. We understand that a Scottish Terrier is different than a Labrador Retriever, even though they are the same species. On the other hand, should I be complaining that the Terrier pup I bought isn't as big as a Lab pup, and expect it to be rectified?
I am sorry to be so blunt. I can't change the truth. Lily hybrids and lily species are not the same, nor are individual lily species the same as each other. Again, if you disagree, I'd love to hear your reasoning!
Now is the opinion part, and again, if you disagree, please tell my why.
I don't know what a general gardener's expectations of species lily bulb sizes are for a four inch pot. (Some grow larger, some grow smaller.) But in my estimation, to expect all species bulbs to be larger than a quarter (25 cent piece) from a four inch pot is unreasonable. I really think it is a good deal, getting two quarter sized L. taliense bulbs plus eight much smaller ones, all for the price of two bulbs in four inch pots. (And now, there is also the addition of two more Lilium parryi.)
