I would try digging it up very carefully, getting the shovel well under the roots, so you don't rip them out, and moving them now. Paradoxically, you might have to shade them for a couple of days while they recover. It is a risk, but so is leaving them.

Janet's Garden

Perhaps you are better off going to a pot for this year to try and get it back on track and then put it back out in the ground. I find that in pots I can bare-root these to pot them on in active growth no problem....likely not a recommended strategy, but I've got them in nothing but 2:1 perlite and pine bark so it is pretty easy to repot in something like this.

By the way, I'm glad to see someone post about Haemanthus here....a very exciting genus that I've only discovered in the past couple of years, but they are very lovely plants.....I've got my first Haemanthus difformis blooming now so I'll post a pic once it finishes opening out.

Best of luck with yours.....coccineus is a great species as the leaves can vary an incredible amount in terms of the marking on the bottom of the leaf :o) Dan

Thanks Janet and Dan. I think I will opt for potting it. That way I can control the amount of sun it gets. I can also control the fert levels more closely than I could in the ground.

I bought one at the end of the season - popped it from its pot - and saw a couple of miserable roots and a stunted bulb. I left it pretty much dry over one winter then repotted in spring. It's now sporting one leaf, in a pot, and living a charmed life away from frost under a bush.

I've been told by people who tell me 'it's easy', they've planted it on a slope with dappled light, in free-draining soil - either beach-sand that's got a fair amount of humus, or a well-weathered volcanic soil - again with lots of humus.

It's said they're not easy in pots because of their long fleshy roots - a bit like Nerine and Hippeastrum. If you've got a pot to suit, though, it's worth a crack. Just don't over-pot, and be prepared to keep moving it on.

Not autumn, because flowering commences after the leaves have died down. Agree with the suggestion to lift with great care so the roots aren't damaged. The less shock the better. I found it took months for mine to settle down to plant life again. (Similar to Nerines.)

Cool for the roots and friable seems to be at least part of the 'answer'. Full sun on a garden centre bench is definitely guaranteed to shrink the bulb!

Hippeastrums are hard to grow in pots? Dern, and here it was one of the things I do best in pots! Silly me...

Just funning you, vetivert. In Canada, at least, it's rare you'll see an amaryllis out of a pot. I find it the easiest of tender bulbs, because it doesn't require any cool storage. I just don't have any rooms I can keep at 5-10 degrees Celsius, so dahlias and the like are a headache.

I either let my amaryllises go dormant at room temperature right in the pot, or just let them grow on through the entire winter and let them bloom on their own schedule, instead of forcing bloom for Christmas. Both methods have worked well for me.

Janet's Garden

Hi Janet,
I too find Hippes easy easy easy in pots. Its got to the stage now where I have so many I will have to start putting them in the garden on the edge of the Clivia drifts where its getting too sunny. So, given that our summer sun is very intense, would you recommend part day full sun, or part day filtered sun ?

Interesting about the Haemanthus as I import all of mine bare root and they are leafing out and growing new roots almost immediately every time I do it....they seem to take extreme stress very well.....actually the Nerine I import from South Africa are about the same.....they do not flower of course the first year, but they set out a nice batch of leaves and roots and are ready for serious action the next summer after they have been converted to our Northern Hemisphere...of course, Haemanthus can flower immediately after being imported without roots in my experience.....needless to say, in my zone 6 climate all of these are pot grown....as are the Hippeastrum. Best of luck with the Haemanthus :o) Dan

Chris, I'm not really an expert, but I haven't yet put mine out in full sun. They do quite well with part shade. Mind you, I'm not the greatest at bulking them up either! I'm feeding more diligently this year. Still, I've had offsets that flowered after being separated, so I've had a little success.

I guess if I were in your shoes, I'd start by putting them out in full but bright shade. If you had one or two you were willing to experiment with, put them in a little more light and see what works. Or find an expert who lives in Oz... ;o)

Janet's Garden

You should contact Dash in OZ...he has a web site you can easily find with most any search on Haemanthus.....he has lots of species from one of the true gurus, Cameron McMaster from South Africa....I can not remember where he is located in your large country, but he might be of some real help. Best of luck with it :o) Dan