Our amaryllis, about a dozen, set bulblets nearly every year plus they
bloom every year. Ours are planted outside on a small knoll where they
get high shade all day long and very little direct sunshine. Nearly
every yard around here, for several miles, has plenty of amaryllis and
the spring bloom is very nice. Most of them are the plain, small bloom
red amaryllis but ours are the huge blooms in at least three colors,
red, white with a red-streaked throat, and peach. Miz anne planted a
couple of new ones last fall, leftovers at a local garden store she got
for a buck a piece. I'm hoping we will see what color they are this
year. They were in mesh bags with the tags torn off when we got them.
George
Barb wrote:
Well...sometimes a plant will produce bulbettes...bulblets...because it
doesn't have enough energy to flower. I transplant those small bulbs =
when I
repot the main bulb.
I put my plants outside so they can get more sun. You have a
greenhouse/good workshop window, so they should be storing enough bloom
energy.
Okay...they're getting enough sun/nutrients...then there's another
possibility. Amaryllis set buds during cool periods, so some people =
have
better luck when they store them in temperatures near 50F/10C for a =
couple
of months. They don't always lose their leaves...it's just easier to =
store
them indoors in cool basements when they're dormant. If you want to =
force
them into dormancy, place the pot on its side and stop watering.
If you repot them in the fall as you bring them in, you could reduce =
pest
invader problems to a minimum by just bringing in the bulb and =
sterilizing
pots at that time...having another set of pots already indoors and =
ready.
Gravel in your bulb beds doesn't help control voles and other beasties =
for
you?
Barb in Southern Indiana
**************
Hi Barb, Yes it has been repotted several times as the bulb grew. =
Probably
each year I had it up until after the seventh blooming. I would let it =
dry
back after the leaves did their thing then a couple years ago, the =
leaves
came and just stayed. It is now a quite large bulb, nice and solid. It =
fits
this pot perfectly. Since it didn't die back, I gave it some Holland =
bulb
food, little time releases, rather than repot it, so as not to disturb =
it. I
figure now with the babies I know why no blooms. Procreation! ha! Isn't =
that
what life is all about? There are 2 new leaves on the bulbettes (is =
that a
word we use in
gardening?) this week. Each now has three with a possible 4th coming. Do =
I
wait for them to die back to break the young away from momma or just do =
it
now? while there are healthy green leaves. (not big leaves mind you, =
just
about 8" long.) We have bulb eating critters in the yard. Voles and mice =
and
so I have pretty much given up dealing with things that are bulbed =
based. I
might put it out in a container but then I have to deal with bugs in the
fall, we have so many earwigs around here, so maybe It will go into the =
new
workshop on the back window sill . I have those orchids and I do not =
want
bugs back in the house after last year!! Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
I can repot the whole thing then each to their own pot. I will let momma
sleep and keep feeding the bulblets.
I am lucky. We bought this house for its orientation and sunlight. It isn't
all glass but has wonderful light! especially in the winter.
The burrowing critters here and tunnelling through everything. We are all
gravel fill with pockets of composted materials to make my beds. (black
spruce bog that was unfilled about 100 years ago.
We have tunnels through the septic field, as fast as we fill them in they
put out another, even through the gravel at the driveway edges in places.
I find the jays and then chipmunks dig into the plant containers and then
the mice move right in behind them. I have lost most of my many bulbs and
have stopped trying except everynow and again I will put out some crocuses.
They do ok, but I see the chipmunks running away and planting them elsewhere
so...
Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/mmillard/index.html
Well...sometimes a plant will produce bulbettes...bulblets...because it
doesn't have enough energy to flower. I transplant those small bulbs when I
repot the main bulb.
I put my plants outside so they can get more sun. You have a
greenhouse/good workshop window, so they should be storing enough bloom
energy.
Okay...they're getting enough sun/nutrients...then there's another
possibility. Amaryllis set buds during cool periods, so some people have
better luck when they store them in temperatures near 50F/10C for a couple
of months. They don't always lose their leaves...it's just easier to store
them indoors in cool basements when they're dormant. If you want to force
them into dormancy, place the pot on its side and stop watering.
If you repot them in the fall as you bring them in, you could reduce pest
invader problems to a minimum by just bringing in the bulb and sterilizing
pots at that time...having another set of pots already indoors and ready.
Gravel in your bulb beds doesn't help control voles and other beasties for
you?
Barb in Southern Indiana
**************
Hi Barb, Yes it has been repotted several times as the bulb grew. Probably
each year I had it up until after the seventh blooming. I would let it dry
back after the leaves did their thing then a couple years ago, the leaves
came and just stayed. It is now a quite large bulb, nice and solid. It fits
this pot perfectly. Since it didn't die back, I gave it some Holland bulb
food, little time releases, rather than repot it, so as not to disturb it. I
figure now with the babies I know why no blooms. Procreation! ha! Isn't that
what life is all about? There are 2 new leaves on the bulbettes (is that a
word we use in
gardening?) this week. Each now has three with a possible 4th coming. Do I
wait for them to die back to break the young away from momma or just do it
now? while there are healthy green leaves. (not big leaves mind you, just
about 8" long.) We have bulb eating critters in the yard. Voles and mice and
so I have pretty much given up dealing with things that are bulbed based. I
might put it out in a container but then I have to deal with bugs in the
fall, we have so many earwigs around here, so maybe It will go into the new
workshop on the back window sill . I have those orchids and I do not want
bugs back in the house after last year!! Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
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I would love to have them growing in my yard. That would be something. $! a
piece. here they will chuck them before they let them go for that.
Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/mmillard/index.html
Marg, I make hardware cloth boxes for all my martagon lily bulbs. Seemsto
be the only thing to keep squirrels from digging/eating them. Squirrels
also like to dig up smallser hostas. Way to get around that is I grow them
in a sunny graden till they are quite large and then transplant into shade
garden where i want them. Hardware cloth boxes might work foryour bulbs.
Ginny
....so box them in with chicken wire. Use Ginny's boxes for bulbs in the
ground. That serves a double purpose...it's easier to move bulbs to
different locations...like, for instance, moving daffs to an out of view
spot when they're done flowering so you can plant annuals in that garden
spot sooner.
Lay chicken wire across the tops of your containers...and if chipmunks can
squeeze through even those small holes, use window screen mesh and pole
small holes in it for your plants...just watch and be sure those rodents
don't tunnel up through drainage holes.
Barb in Southern Indiana
Louisiana's high shade is more intense than Indiana's full sun...but my
grandma's amaryllis will produce bulblets and flowers most years, too.
Barb in Southern Indiana
That is simple (to stop attacks from below) Put the hollow log containers
on a piece of hardware cloth on the ground. The !@#$ def. cant get through
it.
G
attacked
that could work Ginny. I will give that a try at some point.
Hope to repot this momma and off spring today.
Storm cleared away and no major flooding although there is a storm surge
being called for about noon a bit west of us. Wind is down and rain has
stopped for some time so we should be fine... Curtains are going up in my
now guestroom again and some plants will move in there for the east/south
light. Of course after all the scrubbing up (painting spreads more mess than
ever I would have believed!!) the bed goes back in. Voila! a room fit for
company again...:?)
Birds are acting like it is going to be an early spring.......now wouldn't
that be great!!!
Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/mmillard/index.html
I think this is becoming a lot more work than I can cope with this year,
maybe next.
My containers are sections of hollow tree trunk and if I keep them on a
concrete pad I am ok but if I move them off to the ground, I do get attacked
from below. These are great ideas, and I will use them at some point, thanks
all.
Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/mmillard/index.html
ah, I thought of that but it never got done. Maybe this year.
Marg in N.S. Zone 5b
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/mmillard/index.html
