Cut Flower Amaryllis

This one cut Amaryllis stem makes a dramatic focal point in any room. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Cut Flower Amaryllis

We’re heading into the tail end of winter but it’s still cold and dreary where I live. So I look forward to brightening up my rooms with something I can grow inside myself , Amaryllis bulb cut flowers.

These tropical bulbs are usually available around the holiday season so I wait for the sales to add to my collection. These can be grown by themselves in a pot, or mixed in with other greens in pots you may have brought inside to spend winter where it’s warm.

The same guidance applies wether you are growing Amaryllis by themselves or in pots with other plants. The bulbs have to sit above the soil, may need to be staked as the flower stems rapidly grow, and the leaves need to grow to collect energy for the next blooms.

More Amaryllis getting ready to bloom and extend the blooming season. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

One of the things I enjoy about Amaryllis bulb flowers is that one stem can make quite a statement.

Depending on how healthy the original bulb is, and how much energy the bulb has stored, one Amaryllis bulb stem can produce 4 distinct flowers. The cut Amaryllis flowers in my home last about 2 weeks. I keep my temperature around 68-70F. The cut flowers in warmer environments may not last as long.

Since the Amaryllis bulbs grow at different speeds, you can then have new flowers to replace the spent ones, extending the time you have to enjoy fresh cut flowers.

Once finished blooming, just keep watering and allow the leaves to grow. The leaves will collect sunshine and turn that into energy stored in the bulbs. After the leaves die back, give the bulbs a 2 month resting period, repot and then you will once again have lovely dramatic flowers.

My oldest Amaryllis bulbs are now more than 10 years old. I try to keep the same colors in the same pots because they are quite dramatic when they all bloom together.

It’s going to be a few more months before we have garden flowers to cut. Well, by the calendar spring is only a month away but heavy rains can quickly delay spring flowers. Amaryllis bulbs provide that pop of fresh flowers at a time when I, at least, need it most!

Charlotte

Wax Bulb Amaryllis Followup

Lovely bloom from wax bulb Amaryllis Iiberated from the wax enclosing the bulbs. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Wax Bulb Amaryllis Followup

It’s been a couple of weeks since I picked up these four wax-covered Amaryllis bulbs on sale at one of our local home and garden centers. There are few things that brighten a room in winter more than fresh flowers, whether in a cut bouquet or growing live.

Wax bulb Amaryllis are designed to provide blooms without the hassle of soil and watering. Unfortunately cutting off the roots and encasing the bulbs in wax basically kills the flower. So unnecessary when you now how easy Amaryllis bulbs are to plant and grow in the first place.

After removing the wax covering and the small wire stand stuck into the bulb, I placed all four Amaryllis bulbs into a pot with the bulbs and their few roots sitting on top of the soil. They now sit on my work table and get indirect light.

Liberated wax bulb Amaryllis getting ready to bloom. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

As the new buds are growing, they are using up the energy stored in the bulbs. But something else is also growing, new leaves.

The leaves will collect sunlight and turn it into energy that will get stored in the bulbs. That’s what will fuel new flowers in the next growing cycle.

Because the bulbs were encased in wax, I’m keeping a close eye on the bulbs themselves.

These are the bulbs that hopefully are growing new roots. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

It’s a delicate balance between allowing the bulbs to bloom when they have few remaining roots. I’m cutting off the spent Amaryllis flowers as soon as they fade and noting the new leaves growing. The leaves will hopefully help the bulbs grow roots.

Charlotte