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The Tucson Gardener |
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'Tis the Season Personally I always got a little tired of the articles in the garden or shelter publications every November or December touting the beauty and pure simplicity in growing amaryllis. No one I knew ever grew them and sometimes the price of the bulbs, especially in catalogs, seemed a bit steep. Then my mother-in-law showed up for Thanksgiving and had gone to quite a bit of trouble to carry an already planted bulb with her on the plane from West Virginia. She claimed she didn't want to miss the bloom while she visited and the small plastic pot and bulb ended up on our kitchen counter near the window. As expected the amaryllis grew like gang busters and I swear you could see it inching a little closer to the ceiling on a daily basis. All we did was keep the soil moist and turn the pot every once in a while to keep the flower's stem growing straight instead of leaning toward the light. Mom had to get back on the airplane before the plant bloomed and since the flower stalk was nearly two feet tall she couldn't take the plant with her. My wife and I promised to care for the plant until it bloomed and we'd keep her informed of its progress. Eventually the bulb did produce some nice big white flowers. I got to admit I was hoping for red, pink, salmon or something with a little more color for the holiday season but it was still a pretty bloom. The following year as I roamed a Home Depot in November I spotted a whole stack of boxes that each held an amaryllis bulb, plastic pot, a growing medium and instructions for planting. Remembering the white amaryllis I decided what the heck and for $5 a shot I bought two. Not long after that there were two plastic pots sitting on the kitchen counter near the window with little green shoots making their way toward the kitchen's ceiling. When they finally bloomed I had deep red "Red Lion" and a stripped red "Minerva" flowers. They were quite a bit more striking than the previous year's white blooms. While in bloom the plants ended up next to the fireplace where they were prominently displayed over Christmas and New Years.
Once the flowers faded I cut off the flower stalks and moved the plants and pots to the greenhouse where I've watered and fertilized waiting for the leaves to yellow so I can then let them dry out and replant for another winter show of bloom. Of course if I happen to spot another good buy on the bulbs there's no doubt a couple more pots of amaryllis will end up on our kitchen counter near the window. If you're interested in more information about amaryllis and other bulbs take a look at Bulb.com. (2000) |
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planting an amaryllis bulb (Hippeastrum)
or two this holiday season will give you the opportunity to watch a fast growing plant
produce a stunning set of flowers.
