Amaryllis are beautiful flowering plants. Amaryllis are great as houseplants or they can be grown in the garden. Here are tips and advice on how to grow and care for Amaryllis plants.
How to Select Amaryllis Bulbs
When buying Amaryllis bulbs, it is best to shop early as soon as the bulbs appear in stores. Because the longer the bulbs are in storage, the more moisture it will loose. This definitely affects the Amaryllis blooms the following years. Handle Amaryllis bulbs with care, check each bulb carefully before you buy. Don’t buy Amaryllis bulbs with mushy gray spots, visible mold, lightweight or with any damage. The base of the Amaryllis bulbs should be firm and solid. If you order your Amaryllis bulbs online, unpack the bulbs as soon as they arrive. Even if the Amaryllis bulbs are dormant when you buy them, they are still alive and are affected by what you do to them or where you put them. If they get too wet, they will rot; if they are left out under the sun’s heat, they will dry out; if they are sealed in plastic bag too long, they will suffocate and rot. It’s important to immediately unpack your Amaryllis bulbs when you bring them home.
How to Grow Amaryllis Bulbs
Soil Mixture:
The following is a simple mixture for container and garden culture bedding of Amaryllis.
1 part peat moss.
1 part other organic material such as earthworm castings, compost. Leaf mold or Nitrogen stabilized bark.
1 part builders’ sand.
Planting Instructions:
Pot amaryllis bulbs from mid-autumn through winter or around November to February. Prepare the organic mix described above, place one Amaryllis bulb in a 5 – 7 inches deep pot or 3 to 4 bulbs in a 14 – 16 inches pot. Fill pot 1/3 full of the organic mix and place Amaryllis bulb with roots spread and pointing downward, cover with an inch of soil for a two inch bulb, so that half of the bulb will be above soil surface. Water immediately and thoroughly, keep the pot barely moist. Upon signs of new growth, water regularly until after Amaryllis bloom and leaves turn yellow. When flowers fade, cut off flowering stem. Continue watering to encourage leaf growth.
How to Use Earthworms to Help Your Amaryllis Grow Better
Earthworms are beneficial in helping your Amaryllis grow better. The day after planting your Amaryllis bulb, dig a small ½ inch hole beside the plant and put a ½ dozen live earthworms into it then cover the earthworm with soil.
How to Take Care of Amaryllis Plants
Look for sunny or part shaded area for your Amaryllis in your garden; dig and mix up the soil with the organic mix above, then set out the bulbs 1 foot apart keeping the top of the bulbs level with the soil surface. Water thoroughly then keep soil just barely moist until leaves emerge. Dig a small ½ inch hole beside the bulb the day after planting and put a ½ dozen live earthworms into it then cover the earthworm with soil so that birds won’t come and pick them up right away. Increase watering after sprouting. After the blooms have faded, cut off the stalks when the foliage turns yellow and die down, stop watering. Keep soil dry until new growth begins.
How to Propagate Amaryllis Plants
You can propagate Amaryllis by division of clumps in early autumn if the clumps are too crowded and bloom quality decline. Another way to propagate Amaryllis is by growing from seeds. Amaryllis grown from seeds will take a few years before they grow to blooming size.
How to Force More Blooms Out of Your Amaryllis
There are ways to get more blooms out of your beautiful Amaryllis. You can get more blooms by taking these steps. It’s a multi-year process but fairly easy to execute and you will be rewarded with beautiful Amaryllis blooms! After the entire Amaryllis plant has died off, pull the Amaryllis bulb out of the soil, then cut off the foliage or leaves and store the bulb in a cool, dry place. Store your Amaryllis bulbs until the next planting season which is usually spring time after the danger of frost has gone. In the Spring, plant the Amaryllis bulb properly by digging a small hole into the ground to fit 2/3 rd of the Amaryllis bulb with pointed part on top showing about 1/3 rd of the bulb. Keep your Amaryllis well watered until summer or July. Expect a gorgeous bloom. Then remove the Amaryllis bulb again after the first frost. Store it again in a cool, dry place until the end of October. This time, replant the bulb in a pot indoors, not outdoor to get another bloom during Christmas or a few weeks after potting indoors. The potted amaryllis bulb can be brought to bloom in just a few weeks. Keep it slightly moist in a warm dark place until roots have formed. Then move the pot to a warm lightly shaded place. Keep up with the slight moist condition until leaves start to form, increase watering at this time.