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Amaryllis/Hippeastrum

RED BLOTCH?

9 years ago

I noticed the other day that a new amaryllis bulb that I purchased had what I thought was red blotch, the leaf was red in areas and rotting away. Now it seems like all of my amaryllis have what I think is red blotch. Do these amaryllis really have red blotch and what is the best treatment for them? I keep the amaryllis in pots indoors in a sunny windowsill and they are planted in a 1 part perlite, 1 part vermiculite, 2 part spaghnum peat moss mix

Featured Answer

kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)

9 years ago

I think the red on the dried brown layers isn't too scary, but it looks scary. When I get new bulbs with any red, I peel to the first healthy layer. Red blotch is usually much brighter and there is much "more". It's a fungus and a systemic fungicide can control it. Don't keep your bulbs too wet. Little dots of red/brown can indicate damage from either a current or recent case of mites. A systemic insecticide will take care of that. Keep your hands clean as well as your equipment. Other than a recent pot of bulbs that were starting to rot and turn red and mushy, (they were very rootbound and likely too wet as we've had a wet winter), I have been lucky!

If you are just starting out with these bulbs, or growing your collection, you might get a copy of Veronica Read' s book, "Hippeastrum, the Gardener's Amaryllis". I think there are copies on Amazon. It's a great book.

Kristi

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Comments (10)

chris_p1
Original Author
9 years ago
These amaryllis were affected as well
kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
9 years ago
Where did you buy these from.....?
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I don't think you have red blotch, but those long, pink necks on the bulb do not look quite right for Hippeastrum. I wonder if they gave you Lycoris bulbs. What do others think?
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For me the last picture looks like they are sitting in a too dense soil. My recommendation against the red blotch would be to repot them into a more aired soil and water rarely but then not sparingly. All my Hippeastrum are sitting in cocofibre with a layer of clayballs underneath. I water once a week or so in the saucer so that the clay can suck up all the water. A whole saucer full of water is drained within half a minute, that's a sign for me that the plants needed water. If water stays longer than a minute in the saucer, I flush it away. This way all bulbs receive enough water but never get wet themselves. The basal plate is the critical part and it is quite a bit away from where the water is given. This only works if the plants are inside all year round, because water from above compresses the cocofibre.
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I had that happen to one of my bulbs. I'm not sure what it is as Google was not very helpful. But I isolated the Bob and let it grow out and treated with mite-cide and antifungal in case that is the problem. The subsequent leaves are ok, but it's still a wait game. I wouldn't chuck out a bulb unless it's mosaic virus that threatens the rest of your bulbs. :D
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OK. Well, now you should just wait. Do not water the bulb after the initial watering in fact I may not have watered it at all and just let it sit on top of the soil for some (a few weeks) time so you could easily lift it up to check on whether or not you had dried it properly and look for the possibility of rot which can certainly happen at this point. I do that often with bulbs that I have either trimmed the basal plate or had cut some tissue due to a rot issue and want to be sure that it had dried properly. Later, you can just add an inch or two of soil on top and once again your bulb will be buried. I see that you bud tip has turned reddish green, probably just the variety (Charisma buds have a red cast to them if I'm not mistaken) and nothing to worry about. Make sure the soil is not constantly wet. At this point dry is much better than wet. Good luck and check back when the bud starts to elongate which is most likely all that the bulb will do initially... bloom first and then think about roots and leaves. Donna☺☺
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chris_p1
Original Author
9 years ago
Kaboem the two small ones I purchased from a man with an amaryllis farm who makes instructional videos on YouTube his channel is called Amaryllis Man. The larger ones I purchased from Longfield Gardens.
chris_p1
Original Author
9 years ago
Kaboem thank you so much! I just started out growing plants and seeing that all of them were infected with what I thought was red bloch I was ready to quit. Should I check under the brown peels to see if there is any red and peel it off or should the systemic fungicide take care of it? and is there a certain type of systemic fungicide that works best?
kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I use the green light products. I'm sure there are others who will chime in...Donna?? She's a peeler, like me!!
chris_p1 thanked kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
9 years ago
Your bulbs don't look too bad to me, just a few layers of dried scales that do need to be carefully peeled off. Just remember that the layers of the bulbs will often turn red or reddish brown before they turn totally brown. Red blotch will be quite red and can show canker type sores on the bulbs when they bare badly infected. As for those little dots here and there just keep an eye on them. Also, any bruising of the bulb will cause it to turn red also.

Keeping your bulbs planted high, peeling off the dead layers and keeping them on the dry side but not dried out is the best way to avoid stagonospora curtisii (red blotch). Your soil mixture looks fine. Good luck.

Donna
chris_p1 thanked dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
chris_p1
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you so much Donna and Kristi for your help! I just want to be sure when do I know when to pull off the dried scales?
kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
9 years ago
Chris, I pull off anything that is loose. Tight brown layers are good!
chris_p1 thanked kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
chris_p1
Original Author
9 years ago
Sounds good, thank you for all of your help!

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