Amaryllis is growing

This should definitely help ironworker! I will sow some in soil, and try to float some, storing some in the fridge for backup.

Here they are! The pods that will bring forth a new generation of amaryllis!

A brighter photo. They are small now, but they will grow.

Bloomfly,
We cut off the whole stem as soon as the flowers dries up, I did not know that you can save the pods.

Can you post a thread what to do with the pods when they ripen?

Thanks,

Belle

Well generally, a lot of people choose to cut off the stem after the flowers fade, because they think growing amaryllis from seed may not be worth it as the mother bulb may not flower for 1-2 years, the seeds might be infertile, or the plants will not come true from seed. As I may have mentioned on my amaryllis seeds thread, I enjoy the satisfaction of growing long term seeds (such as trees and bulbs) from seed, and eventually seeing them bloom as a reward. YouTube has a series of videos on amaryllis seed germination, harvesting, pollination, and even a video on the sizes of amaryllis seedling sizes through the years. They are by Amaryllis man. The videos had some info on germination the seeds, but not enough to help someone through the years. Bellieg, my thread on amaryllis seeds should eventually cover your questions. Even I wasn't sure of what to do (when to plant, how to plant, when to harvest, how to harvest,etc).

Glad I could help Bloomfly. Your pods look great! Hope to have some of my own soon. I'll have to follow your thread to see how you're doing in the future. Did you get a chance to read any of the old forums there? I believe that some of your unanswered questions were in there. I thought that site was still active, but it looks like it may be idle. Still a great source of starter info though. Anyway, I hope all this works out so I can learn from you too. I will keep looking for any help for us along the way so we can start trading!
Did you see the portion on that site where they show you how to save pollen for future plant hybrids? I really never thought of that. I'm going to try my "apple blossom" with my "minerva" when it blooms. Hope it works!

I can't wait to see the outcome! You pollinated your 'red lion' right? It is doubtful that the 'red lion''s flowers are still up, but if the stigma is there, you might be able to cross your 'apple blossom' with your 'red lion' (just a suggestion if the flowers are still alive). Sorry if the pictures are blurry, the camera I took them with was on the wrong setting.

This message was edited Jan 15, 2012 12:03 PM

Heres a clearer photo. They are not really yellow. The camera's flash makes it appear to be dying.

The picture is fine Bloomfly. They really look nice. Oddly enough, two of the red flowers are still going! A little wilted around the edges, but still very colorful. I did cross them but too early to tell if it took yet. It appears that one may be swelling a bit, but it might just be wishful thinking. About how long did it take for you to know for sure? I want to say four, maybe five days on the first one. I'm going to start using my journal more!

I started to notice swelling in the back of the bloom almost immediately after the bloom was pollinated, which was right before the flower faded and began to dry up.

The one faded flower does appear to be larger at the base than the others...so here's hoping. It still has one more bloom growing on it and that may be robbing energy. If it is pollinated, I wonder if I should remove the new bloom so as not to stress the plant? I bought it as a kit and it had already started growing. I'm not going to put this one into dormancy so it can regain its strength and then bloom again on its own. I know they're cheap to replace, but I'd like to see how long I can keep it around. Defeats the purpose if I replace them every Christmas! I read on that site of one woman whose grandmother had passed down a bulb a hundred years old! I don't expect that from any of mine, but it shows just how hardy these plants are with proper care.

I am thinking if I get the full time job that I am applying for, I will get a Amaryllis hippestrum and see if it will grow for me, all your beautiful pictures have gotten me wondering if I can grow one too. Do I have to wait for Christmas again, or can I try to grow one now?

If you are lucky enough to find one, then yes, you can. as long as the temperatures when the flowers emerge and open are cool, you should be able to grow one. I had one that I managed to get to bloom in the middle of summer! I forgot to take it out of dormancy, (long time lol) and when it sprouted, a flower scape grow up. It didn't go dormant again until the following summer, in which it had sent up another flower scape in mid winter. This was the one that rotted last fall.

Hi Teddy. If you do some checking, maybe some of the big home improvement stores may still have a couple around. I got some at ACO hardware, maybe check these types. Target carries them, so does Meijer and probably Wal-Mart. Check the bulb if you find one. Make sure its not rotted or soft. Mine was already coming out of dormancy and didn't hurt it any. I'm just not going to force it into dormancy so it will regain its energy. If you can't find any at those places, or want a better quality bulb, go to the link I left on Jan. 14. Great selection and high quality. Good luck and hope to see pictures of your blooms soon!

If they have already sprouted, I consider that to be good. I found my 'Susan' amaryllis as a fat bulb, with the 2 flower scapes poking out. That meant to me that I had one less step to do! I immediately checked the bulb for rotting, and after the entire bulb was felt, I purchase the bulb, brought it home, and soaked the roots in water. To be honest, I was actually was looking for a 'Minerva' amaryllis, but after I saw the 'Susan' amaryllis flower picture, I fell in love. I still liked it, even though the color was red with a slight hint of orange.

My Naked Lady leaves are dying, is that normal now? Someone said I could see blooms in February, I sure hope so.

Yes, since they are inside it is normal.

When the flower stem comes up, can we see it coming up? Will it start like the leaves did?

It will initially look like another leaf, but will rather quickly show a lighter colored tip and then start to swell...you will know it when you see it.

Thanks themoonhowl, I will be so excited when it starts to grow.

Here is a bit more info on Lycoris

http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/Lycoris/Garden_Lycoris_and_More.pdf

One of my Naked Lady leaves is turned yellow, what can be causing this, here is a picture of it. It has healthy green leaves too, but just this one is yellow, should I try to get rid of it or leave it alone?

Remember what I said about the bloom spike looking like a leaf...but lighter? Be patient, Teddy...that may NOT be a leaf...and even if it was, you would not want to mess with it at that point as you could do damage to the bulb.

Ok, I won't mess with it, but this is on a different bulb, I thought the leaves always came on first and then the flower on the Naked Lady plant. I did not think it had leaves AND a flower spike at the same time. Can it have leaves and a flower spike too?

Here is what I was talking about, if it is not a flower spike why is it so early and if not is there something wrong with it.

Teddy, it is very hard to keep track of which bulb is which. At this point, all I can say is sit back and let Nature take its' course. So many of the bulbs have been shuffled around, I am never sure which is which. I am not fussing at you, just trying to establish a bit of order for your questions.

Perhaps if you label each one with a number, Bulb 1, Bulb 2....etc and always use that designation then it would be easier to keep track of what is happening to who.....and maybe why.

Sometimes a leaf will start and for some unknown reason it will not progress any further...it can happen for any number of reasons...but there is green behind that yellowed part, so it appears the bulb itself is still viable.

I can't take a picture of what i did because my camera batteries went dead so I am charging them now, I did label my bulbs like you suggested themoonhowl, the one that had the long leaves is bulb 1, the one that I took the picture of the yellow leaf is bulb 2, and the other one is of course bulb 3. So when the batteries get charged I will take a picture of the set up. Thanks again.

This is bulb 1, as you can see, all the leaves are just about gone.

This is bulb 2, as you can see, it is the one with the yellow leaf.

And this of course is bulb 3, it is kinda trailing behind the others.

I thought you had planted your Lycoris bulbs back before Christmas and had already gotten leaves on them. Are these different bulbs? i am well and truly confused.

Here, the Lycoris in my garden sprout leaves in late September/ October and keep them over the winter until somewhere around late April to mid May when it starts getting really warm. The leaves die back and the bulb works on getting ready to produce blooms which appear in August and September...followed by a new set of leaves.

In this picture taken in March, you can see the Lycoris in the upper left hand corner.

In this photo, taken the first week in October, you can see the blooms, but all the foliage has yet to start growing. I have mostly yellow Lycoris, with the odd red one showing up now and then.

your lycoris make a handsome clump in the first pic of the magnolia themoonhowl, and it must be fun to find a radiant red one like that!

This message was edited Jan 28, 2012 9:12 PM

The only one that has had long leaves was bulb 1, The others have not grown too much until now. I have mixed them up so much I am truely surprised that they are still alive! I was mixed them up because I thought they were the ones that you force for the holidays. So I finally figured out that the kind I have is the Naked Lady plants and not the Amaryllis hippeastrum that you have for Christmas. So that is the long and short of it. I was trying to grow them according to the directions for a different kind of flower, that is why they have not done anything yet. So now it is time for that word again,P..A..T..I..E..N..C..E!!!!!!!!

All the leaves are off of bulb 1, now just to wait until the flower stem starts to grow. I think someone said 2 more months, geez, I waited this long for the leaves to come up.

Thanks CZpush...there is also another clump in the lower right corner with the Kniphofia and daylilies and probably 3 or 4 others scattered around...I like the fact that there is some green out there in the winter. yes, especially when they just pop up like that...guess that is why one of the names is Surprise Lily...grin

Yes Teddy...that word again...grin

Poor little sprout with no leaves, looks kinds sad don't it? I keep watering it when it looks dry don't I? Am I supposed to give it any fertilizer now, or should I just leave it alone? Help, themoonhowl, you are my advice counselor. There are no web links that I can go to about Naked Lady plants indoors, they are all outdoor advice.

No water or fertilizer until it starts showing a touch of green. Then you can give it a good drink with a 1/2 strength water soluble fertilizer. Wait until the soil is almost dry before watering it again (soil down a couple inches in the pot). I know here, the bulbs are planted at least 2 times the height of the bulb under ground...

Some info on growing indoors

http://helga-george.suite101.com/the-magic-lily--a-drought-tolerant-species-of-lycoris-a273830

My other question for you, is which Lycoris do you have? L squagmigera (pink/lavender), L radiata (red) or L aurea (yellow) They are all called naked ladies, surprise lily, resurrection lily, magic lily....

If this is the one that grows outdoors in OH then it's L. squamigera, the others wouldn't be hardy there.

If that is the case, then Teddy, they aren't even supposed to bloom until mid to late summer.

Teddy, Lakeview is zone 5b...the Lycoris squagmigera are winter hardy there. My suggestion is to follow the directions for growing them outdoors. Plant them at the appropriate time at the proper depth, making sure they get at least morning sun, and then leave them in the ground. Everything I read says hardy to Zone 5...marginally hardy to zone 4...My friend grows then in her zone 5 Northern Illinois garden and leaves them in the ground year round. Another friend grows them in containers in Northern Wisconsin and just stores the containers over winter so they don't freeze.

http://www.ehow.com/how_2078751_grow-surprise-lily.html