PlantFiles: Amaryllis
Hippeastrum 'Red Lion'

I bought my Red Lion because I spotted these bags of Amaryllises, and my eye was riveted to one in particular because, there in the bag, this bulb was BLOOMING! No green, no long roots.....just the brown bulb and this BEAUTIFUL velvet red bloom begging someone to see it and take it home and plant it. Which I did. Happily. Glad I did. This amaryllis has been amazing. It started growing and greening up immediately and has grown faster than any of my other amaryllis I've had....and in three years, it has bloomed every year, bigger and better than the last and has put on a couple of pup bulbs as well, and THEY are getting big too! Like parent, like child. The foliage is beautiful and the blooms are breathtaking! I have it planted in a semi-sunny-shady area that is well-drained and feed it a few times a year with plain ol' 13-13-13 lawn fertilizer and it is doing great. A Wonderful plant.

Although hybrid amaryllis don't "breed true," (babies don't always look like parents, it's kinda a roll of the dice) I have enjoyed saving seed from this bright, showy, & HEARTY landscaping variety. Besides, breeding plants is like breeding dogs. They may call them mutts now, but there will never be any new breeds/varieties/cultivars if we human-types never breed them! ;-)

It took some practice: my first few tries were sterile, because I let the seed sit around too long, or didn't pollinate right. (I quickly learned that most bulb seeds have to be planted within a week or two of ripening/harvest. I've since heard that this can be extended to about a month with refrigeration, but I wouldn't push it beyond that.) I got a few sprouts from the next batch, but I didn't research the hz, and they died in the fall.

The next bloom cycle I got 133 seedlings. 30 died when a tray of pots were knocked over & crushed. I kept the "pick of the litter." I gave 50 to a charity yard sale, and 50 to the local Master Gardeners plant swap. I nursed the 2 runts back to health and gave them to a neighbor.

After borrowing space and adding in the cost of pots and soil, I decided to take a break. Right now, I trade my seeds away to people who can use them for landscaping & genetics research. If I ever graduate from apt life, I'll go back to keeping an occasional "pick of the litter."

The plants take a different amount of time to mature from seedling to flowering envy of the neighborhood. In Miami, it's about 18 months; 2 years max. Here in PA, the "pick of the litter" matured in 4 years in an east window, and most of its siblings will mature sometime this year. The official word I got was "3 to 5 years in PA." Depending on the light, water, & fertilizer, it just varies. They seem to take all the light they can get, and then it's just a proportional amount of the other factors.

The great thing is, once they're mature, they keep blooming every 12 - 18 months with proper care. They don't need any special cold period or cutting back. I've read that stuff, and maybe it's needed to force a bloom for a special timing, but just to get a gorgeous flower once a year, all they need is a 6 to 8 in pot, a sunny window, weekly watering, and an occasional feeding.

happily growing in Miami, either in pots or in the ground. As long as one keeps watering, it is evergreen here.

A very interesting plant to grow. It can be re-flowered by harvested in fall before first frost and allowing leaves to die back. 3-4 months later the flower scapes will appear at the nose of the bulb at which time the plant can re-potted and brought to flower.

This requires that the bulb has been given atleast 6-8 months (longer is ok) growing period (with green leaves) during which it is given plenty of sun, water, and fertilizer. These plants are heavy feeders so don't skimp.

In fall harvest bulbs before frost and allow leaves to die back. After leaves have died back, they can be cut off at the nose and the bulb stored in a place out of direct sunlight, but protected from frost. Store moderately cool (room temperatures or heated basement) for 3-4 months.

When the flower scapes appear at the nose of the bulb, it can either be re-potted immediately and started back into growth, or - if later bloom is desired - keep it at temperatures around 40 F which is a holding temperature. E.g. at this time, you can put the bulb in the fridge to DELAY flowering. You can generally not encouarge the bulb to advance flowering, but once flower scapes show, you can hold them back by storing cool (this is not a vernalization requirement similar to that of spring flowering bulbs like tulips, but purely a way to delay flowering until desired).

After the amaryllis is repotted, it will typically flower within 3-5 weeks. After flowering, deadhead the flower scapes but continue to grow the plant green until after last chance of frost, when you can transition the plant outdoors. Plant it in full sun.

The 3-4 months rest period act as a "programming" to induce flowering. However, you do not need to give the plant a rest period to re-flower. You can continue to grow it green indoors as a houseplant, or in greenhouse, at temperatures above 55F and eventually the plant will flower on it's own. The rest period only acts as a way to program it to flower at a specific time.

These plants are unfortunately very heavily disposed to red blotch disease. Water carefully and avoid planting bulb too deep. Best to let 1/2 of the bulb stay above ground. Choose a pot which diameter is about 2" larger than the diameter of the bulb.

A fantastic and rewarding growing experience with huge showy flowers.

This is one of our favorite flowers to plant right after Thanksgiving, along with Christmas cactus. We were fortunate to obtain a bulb that has two stalks with 4 flowers on one and 5 on the other. I just follow the direction form the kit it came with. It is so easy. The flowers are not scented and are about 8" across. Now that the flowers are faded, I cut off the stalks and grow the bulb with just the leaves. Hopefully by the end of the year we can repeat the process.

I purchased a planting "kit" of this Amaryllis back in early December, & what a show it is putting on for me right now!! Currently there is a 2-1/2-foot tall stalk with 4 HUGE bright velvety red flowers, with another bloom stalk already almost a foot on the way.

I will say, however, that contrary to the above-referenced info on this variety, it is NOT fragrant.

Would also like to add that this bulb kit, although purchased locally, came from "Van Bourgondien Dutch Bulbs", which has a horrible rating here for mail order. While they may be terrible for mail order, please don't hesitate to purchase bulbs from them which might be available to you locally - all of the local bulbs I've purchased (Amaryllis, paperwhites, tulips, daffodils) have come from them, & all have performed beautifully.

I purchased one on sale 2 weeks ago, it's growing really fast! The other I bought a couple months ago and just brought it in the house, I can't wait to see what color it is, it was a yard sale, she didn't know the color, so maybe a Holiday surprise.

I live near Huntsville,AL and many people buy these amaryllis half off after christmas and plant them after last frost. They bloom here around the middle or end of May and into early June and the big red flowers are tropical in appearance. The only problem I have is a rust on the leaves. With a good layer of mulch they can survive to zone 7.

This perennial also grows well in the UK

This amaryllis is commonly available around November and December for use as a holiday accent or for gift giving. The large, showy blooms are a warm shade of red that really helps perk up a dull, cold winter! With a small amount of effort, they will bloom year after year. They like a deep pot that is only slightly larger around than the bulb. To rebloom, I allow the foliage to continue growing through to the end of summer, stop watering, let the foliage die back, then put it away (closet, basement--someplace where it won't freeze) and forget about it for at least a month. Bring it out at the beginning of December and start watering again and it will usually bloom for the holidays.