Hello Angelo,
I was viewing your Lewisia cotyledon picture and it looks as if it placed in a rock garden setting. Am I correct? Did you grow it in a pot and place it out eventually?. I have a collection of Lewisias ready to go out and was wondering about positioning, soil, watering etc. Mine are about the size of yours pictured. They are some of the 'Regenbogen' series from Jelitto. I do have a batch of the wild form L.c. var howellii and a few others from different seedexes- TiA for any advice.
Arturo

I have 3 Lewisia in a small area, the soil is 2 parts sand, 2 parts pea gravel, 1 part compost. The only water they get is only rain, no supplemental.
In the fall I cover the area with plastic netting to keep the squirrels out, the area gets coved with oak leaves and snow in the winter. The area faces the East, the majority of the sun is early in the day until approximately 1pm. The coldest it got last winter was -28 with minimum snow cover. The plants have been in place for several years

Thank you Rj for your input! . How much rain do you get? With your location I suspect you are referring to summer rain ( that is during warm period when the rosette seems more active). Have you had problems with winter decay? My rainy season is late fall up to early spring, with little standing snow. I could cover them up with an oak leaf mulch though. My soil is very poor and gravelly so I'll add a fifth of leaf mould that should provide for their nutrient needs. Late spring it dries up all the way to bone dry before the first rains. My pots are inside with no watering during winter. Later in spring they have spent these first years outside in a morning sunlit position as you mention. I did have to water them occasionally with bottom watering. They have reached about 6" in diameter and are getting ready for their show. So up to here it seems that I've managed properly. My concern is our wet winter season. Your pictures shows them planted out in a rock garden setting. Are they planted flat or on a slanted/slope position. I grew them for an outdoor display, however I may keep a few potted up to enjoy them indoors in my cool greenhouse. I'm completely fascinated with these N.American succulents
Thanks again

Arturo

Hi Arturo, last year we had our second wettest year on record 42" Normally we get our rain from mid-late April until September. We had around 77" of Snow last year, whatcha can be from late Nov to early April. At this time of the year this is what my Lewisia look like



Every year I wonder if they will make it, and they do! Fascinating plant!

Rj,Thank you again for your added info. Your winter pictures show what to expect outside. Great! I will try a few out this coming winter. However, just in case I'll keep sowing a few more now, as replacements... . My best I'll keep potted indoors as if for the alpine house ( that I don't have) a second very good ones I'll plant them out in the rock garden, but potted so that I can lift them up in fall and bring them inside also. The third will be for those in ground that if I loose I don't mind.... (:blushing: that much... )... (I simply love them )
Arturo