Jodik says: The coir might look dry on top, but down in the center of the pot, it could be quite moisture-laden! I have found it helpful to insert little wooden skewers carefully into the soil to about root level, and leave them there... I take them out and press them against my cheek to test for dampness... if they feel at all damp, I wait to water... but if the skewer comes out dry, it's time to water. My coir is 4" deep in a closed pot. I put the skewer to the bottom of the pot. When I take it out how many inches of bone dry top "soil" should there be before it's time to water again? Is it 1", 2" or 4"? I just went 10 days without water and only 1" of the top was dry so am I supposed to water this direct sun pot once every two weeks or so to avoid over watering, really? And how much water for my 6" closed pot? I had been watering 1 1/2 cup or so once a week and my plant was fine but I'm now worried that was too much so I'm re-evaluating. I know what conventional wisdom says (water deep, not shallow) but that advice doesn't seem to apply to my situation. Also how long should it be before I see new leaf growth in the summer time (first season outside)? My 18 month old Red Lion so far has only grown new leaves once a year. At potting and at dormancy end.

I think the key to raising healthy seedlings lies in observing them closely to make sure they are kept in optimal conditions... proper watering, root space, enough light, a well-draining medium... and making sure they are fed. Yes, Java... this will be my first year of growing hippeastrums from seed... but I'm an old hand at gardening in general, and have been growing some type of plant or other since I can remember! At one point in my life, I had well over 200 house plants in a small cape cod home! Half of those were moved into that small home from a one bedroom apartment! I've had my oldest hippeastrum bulb, a Minerva, going on 8 years or more... but I just recently became completely addicted to collecting, growing and breeding these bulbs! It's funny... for most of the time I've had my Minerva, I sort of neglected the poor thing... and she's been the most wonderful plant I've ever had! She blooms almost every year without fail, and this past winter, she grew a baby! Anyway... I was thinking along the lines of orchid pots for young bulbs... they tend to be tall and narrow, and have slits, which would allow the roots to "breathe"... it's just a thought, but I might experiment with a few. The clear, taller cymbidium pots would be worth checking out! I just planted a flat of hippeastrum seeds last night... I've got a 72 cell flat planted with rows of 6 seeds, each in a cell, the rows running across the flat... if you know what I mean. Planted are: 2 rows of Prelude x Self 1 row of San Remo x Self 1 row of Happiness x Candy Floss 1 row of Minerva x Self 1 row of Limona x Picotee 1 row of Charisma x Self 1 row of Limona x Self 1 row of Vivaldi x Self 1 row of Delphinium "Green Twist" - a gift from Lizalily! 1 row of Exotic Star 1 row of Lovely Garden If these do well, I'll plant more... I just want to be sure germination takes place, and one flat will be a good test. The medium I used is just plain old MiracleGro potting soil mixed with quite a bit of sand. I've got the flat covered with a little plastic greenhouse cover, and since it's been a bit chilly, I've got it indoors on a heat mat. Once I see a sprout, I'll move the flat outside to grow in the sun, along with all my other flats of annual and perennial seeds. I had very good luck germinating hippeastrum seeds by floating them in water, but once I transplanted them, they went downhill and all expired. I think it may have been due to the poor indoor propagation area I have... the ambient temperature fluctuates over winter, humidity is low, and my grow lights are cheap! After losing the dozen or so seedlings I started over winter, I decided to wait until spring to start again. This is a much better time of year for seeds to germinate and grow, and I can do it all outdoors in the natural elements of sun and fresh air. I think this time I will be successful.

Personally, I think it all depends on the growing conditions you have to offer... for instance, since I didn't have decent grow lights, my attempt at growing seeds indoors during the colder months was a failure. However, when I planted them in a flat of quality potting soil outdoors this past spring, they did very well! Sprouting the seeds in water was not my problem... it was afterward, when I moved them to soil, that they declined and died. I think I may have had better success if it had been spring, and I could have brought them outdoors for better air circulation and some sunlight. When I planted my seeds in potting mix, I kept the flat in an area that got morning sun... by noon, the sun was passing over the garage that the flat was in front of, and they were shaded from the harsh afternoon sun. The flat was on a concrete slab, and I think the slab heated up every morning and radiated the heat at night, keeping the mix and seeds warm enough to germinate and grow nice roots and leaves. The floating in water method worked best for faster germination, I noticed. The potting mix seeds seemed to take longer to sprout, although, that could be because the seedlings also had to poke through the soil surface, so it just seemed to take longer. I think either method works well, depending on the environment you have to offer. Try both... see which works better for you!

Greetings from Germany,and thank you so much for your almost instant feedback, and for your appreciation. At first and generally, I suggest that we should discontinue the era of "Sir" now - as nice as it was, it was disturbing to another garden friend though. So, I apppreciate to be Hans-Werner (pronunciation: [HunsVairnair] My suggestion and "promise" is actually based on EXPERIENCE. I forgot to mention this. Besides some kindergardens of DIP seedlings, I had even (12) seedlings of (18 of) a TET knight Star lily in blooms (=67%) after 2 years, but this was a particular case, because the parent ("PapDon1", selfpollinated) was a special, "regenerated" TET out of crossbreeding H.papilio with "Donau" iow: DIP x TET, and it was very VIGOROUS. From the few documentaries on "hippeastrum kindergartens" that I perceive them occasionally, I can conclude, that the main imperfectness, that it will considerably delay growth and maidenblooms, respectively, is sowing seeds / replanting tiny seedlings into SHALLOW containers/trays. You will accomplish the major success with pots or balcony boxes, that are 12 and more cm in height. It is crucial, to make them seedlings grow as fast as possible, FROM the very start on. Watering should be applied as "CYCLING"[namely between wet and dry] that is, RINSE thoroughly, until a lot of water drains out of the bottom holes. With a volume of lukewarm water, including dilute feeding, that equals 1/2 to 1 container/substrate volume (!) Then, let the the substrate dry until its surface will become bright again. Although this sounds trivial, I can conclude from the appearance of the substrate surface in pictures, that this measure is generally not consequently applied. I regret that my OWN breeding activities were / are largely impaired through my DEPRESSIONS. Solely to indicate this CIRCUMSTANCE that it is intended as an explanation for you, but not as an ignition for DISCUSSING this issue. Things appear to be getting a little bit better now, though ;)