Will my amaryllis bloom this year after not blooming last year?

18 years ago

Last year in January I purchased some clearance amaryllis bulbs from Harris Seeds in Rochester (this was in-store, not catalog). Nothing really uncommon, just run-of-the-mill amaryllis. There were four healthy bulbs. All had flower buds. I potted them, gave them bottom heat, and the buds grew... then died. There was no evidence of disease or bugs. I let the foliage grow. May, June, July, came and went, and lo, and behold, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a new flower bud on one of the plants. It bloomed in August. The others just got more leaves. When November came I removed them from the pots and put the bulbs in our cool basement (52 degrees) for 12 weeks. I potted them last week. Two of them are getting leaves, but no sign of flower buds yet. Is this normal? Do you think that they will bloom this year or am I going to be wasting my time? I was bad at feeding them last year; I will do a better job feeding them this year. Is it possible that the flowering part of the bulbs died last year? Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

Comments (20)

tuanh
18 years ago
i grow mine in large container and sit them in morning sun area, fertilize with bone meal and let them grow, stop water and let the soil dry out in late november, spring come around late march, water and bulbs start to grow- they always put out nice blooms around may.
on your case. the bulbs may bloom but they need warm temp- and moise soil, unlike store bulbs that you always see flowers appear before leaves- because those bulbs are treated and well fed which guarantee to bloom. your bulbs may bloom and they tend to put out leaves first them bloom later, just like mine always was. happy gardening, th
nycowboy
Original Author
18 years ago
Thank you for the advice. I didn't think of the fact that "store bulbs" are all set to bloom. I'll keep them going. Thanks again.
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me_171
18 years ago
What would you do after store bought bulbs are done to get them "all set to bloom" again in the winter?
nycowboy
Original Author
18 years ago
That is what I am trying to figure out. So far, only leaves. Any suggestions?
sierra_z2b
18 years ago
This has been discussed on this forum already.....have a look as some of the older posts.

You fertilize in the leaf stage and provide lots of light. This is when the bulb prepares the flower for next years bloom.

There are also posts on types of fertilizer, how much and which ones....

'Vera' one of the amaryllis that I planted this fall....sent up leaves and is now finally showing a flower stem.....let hope this one turns out true to name. So far not having much luck with bulbs being what they are supposed to be.

Good luck to you all!
Sierra
nycowboy
Original Author
18 years ago
Thanks, Sierra. I have looked at the older posts and have gleaned a lot of information from them. In the past I have dealt with store bulbs (a la WalMart) that are all set to bloom the minute you bring them home from the store. All you do is stick them in the dirt and, voila, there you are, a flower! I didn't realize that they put out leaves first a lot of times. I guess I was just puzzled as to why the original flower buds died. Do you have any idea why the buds died?

PS. I am through buying bulbs at places like WalMart. My "Violetta" glads (purple with silver stripe) turned out pale purple with no stripe and TWO GREEN glads and one PINK glad thrown in for good measure!
sierra_z2b
18 years ago
Allen, not really sure why the buds died after forming but to trouble shoot this problem....lets see

1. Did the bulb/pot ever dry out completely?
2. Was the plant over watered...
3. Have you checked to see if the bulb is still solid and healthy.....mites, rot and rust are things to watch out for.
4. Was the pot moved.....possibly changing conditions such as lighting and temp?

You may just have to wait another year while looking after it properly so that the bulb forms another flower stem.

Maybe Hans-werner could address the more technical side of this if you ask him.

Good Luck!
Sierra
me_171
18 years ago
So wait, you do want the pot to dy out completly when it is dorment right?
nycowboy
Original Author
18 years ago
Sierra - Thanks for your reply. The plants may have been overwatered, causing the buds to die. They may not have gotten enough light, and they weren't fed. I am older and wiser now so I have tried to remedy these things. All of these may have contributed to the buds dying. The bulbs are all healthy and are putting out leaves. Last night I checked and one may actually be putting out a bud. I am not sure as only the nose is barely out. I'll post to Hans Werner for technical input. I'll keep you posted.
sierra_z2b
18 years ago
me_171........ Well I plan on removing my bulbs from the pots at the end of our growning season and storing the bulbs dry for 6 to 8 weeks. At which time they will be repotted and hopefully grow flower stems again.

There are some threads in this forum about evergreen amaryllis......you may want to read what they say.....I don't have any of those.

Sierra
soultan
16 years ago
Last year, my bulbs were in lawless conditions. I bought a children pool and put them in it in their pots. It was easier to water them this way. I just poured the water in and they all got some.
But then some rains came and completely drenched the bulbs. They were neck up to the water and they stayed that way for a long time by the time I noticed it and let the water away. So I ended up with most of the bulbs shrunk to tiny bulblets that I didn't think would even survive.
Then I had to move to the new house, so I unpotted them, cut the leaves and put them in the new wine cooler I bought for this purpose to make sure that the bulbs do not freeze down.
A month later I noticed that the wine cooler froze down and even killed about 10 bulbs. I returned it to the store and just bought a huge standing fridge that had the freezer part separately. I kept my bulbs in that fridge.
Then I planted them up from Summer, hoping that they would still come back to me. And to my amazement: More than 50 percent FLOWERED!
They shrunk, they were sitting in water, they froze down, they were in dormancy for a half a year or LONGER, and they BLOOMED! I am still floored by some of them. Now, they are out in the flower bed, fattening up. I hope they enjoy the situation.
So you see, once they want to bloom, they just bloom, even if they kill themselves.
jodik_gw
16 years ago
We bought new baby pools for all the dogs to use in summer, and we bought a few extra for gardening use... we've been using them to help grow freshly potted perennial seedlings and young plants... after bumping the seedlings from seed trays or flats to 3 or 4 inch pots, we place all the pots into the baby pools and keep them by the cement pad in front of our gardening garage bay so we can drag them inside if the weather turns foul... we can control the watering and fertilizing this way, and it keeps them all grouped together nicely until they are big enough to plant out in the perennial beds... baby pools have lots of good uses, and they're relatively cheap, too!

I may have to commandeer one for my amaryllis pots this coming spring! Good idea, Soultan! Only, at the rate I'm going, I may need more than one! Hehe!
soultan
16 years ago
Just make sure to watch it especially after rain. Let the excess water out. As you know, they hate sitting in water, and learn from my mistake, and don't let them shrink because of that.
But I loved the idea that I just filled a bucket with fertilized water and poured into the pool, and it spread evenly on the bottom, and this way, every flower could suck up as much as it wanted... Easier watering.
And make sure that they are not in direct scorching sunligh. When they are in pots, the pots can easily get overheated, and I assume that is also the cause of my bulbs slimming down so much. I don't see problems with bulbs being in scorching sun if they are planted in the ground. The ground stays cool enough for the roots, but a pot cannot.
jodik_gw
16 years ago
The place where I will probably put them all is in partial filtered shade part of the day, so they won't get sun burned or over heated... I should drill a small hole in the bottom of the pool, and then find something to plug it with... that way, I can pull the plug if we get rain, and they won't sit in water. It'll be just like a bath tub!
soultan
16 years ago
There are pools available with that plug already. You just have to blow up the structure and put it in the right place.
jodik_gw
16 years ago
I don't think the blow-up kind will hold up very well... we already have a stack of the solid plastic ones, and they're pretty tough... I think they will withstand the weather a bit better. It gets really windy here when it storms, and the trees will be dropping small branches... Larry would hate to keep having to patch a blow-up pool for plants! LOL! I'd like to be able to have it rigid enough that I can drag it into the garage in case of really bad weather! Like tornado weather!
soultan
16 years ago
With plants in it, it will be VERY difficult to drag it in. Now that I planted my bulbs out, I cannot just move them when I want it, but I am glad that they like it out there. I will pull them in a few days. They don't even know what's coming... It is a surprise.
jodik_gw
16 years ago
Do you think they will consider it a good surprise or a bad surprise?!
soultan
16 years ago
Bad. They'd like to stay outside and enjoy the weather and surrounding, but I want them to flower inside, so I will force them. The word "force" sounds kind of drastic anyway.
jodik_gw
16 years ago
Yes, it does... I know I hate to be forced into anything! Although, since they've had their time out in the sunshine, and have gathered the energy they need, it's time for a nap in the fridge so they can be taken out at some point in time to bloom again! It's actually a very interesting cycle...

Will my amaryllis bloom this year after not blooming last year?

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Will my amaryllis bloom this year after not blooming last year?

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