Water growen Amaryllis

Ok I brought this at Walmart It grows in dirty and next to them you can grow them in water. So I put the one ( That grows in dirt in water) I just brought because it was much cheeper and this is what I have gotten may be to fast it is bloomming befor Holidays. The only bad thing that I have found is you have to change the water offten because it starts to smell But as I was reading they say it will bloom 4x a years do you think if I keep changing the water Mine will do the same thing as far as blooming? Hope you can see pictures not very clear the digital was cold when I decided to do this. All so sorry about spelling I am so bad
Dimmer

Dimmer, i have never tried to grow amaryllis in water, but I don't believe that you will be able to get an amaryllis bulb to bloom more than once just grown in water. They are quite subject to rotting if too wet. they do require a fairly regular fertilizing program. Of course i could be all wrong about that. i have about 25 amaryllis now from seasons past. All but 5 are stored in my bonsai storage area in pots that they grew in outside this past summer. i will bring another 5 into the house tomorrow to get them started to grow and bloom this winter. Hope I haven't confused you too much. Donna

No you haven't but thanks I think after Its done bloomming I will take it out of the water and put in refrigator for a couple of week maybe I will put someplant food in the water today who knows what will happen . thanks for writting
Kim

I could be wrong, but I believe amaryllis responds to wet/dry cycles, not hot/cold. It's a tropical, and it doesn't get very cold where they live, but the seasons vary in moisture. Try letting them get very dry for a month or two (the foliage will wilt, but it will put new out when you resume watering.). This has worked for me. They also like to be pot bound from what I've heard so pot them up tightly, with the shoulders of the bulbs above the soil line.

Very pretty amaryllis with lots of bloom, dimmer. I have never tried amaryllis in water alone, but I'm guessing what they told you might work....

Maybe when they say it will bloom four times they mean four stalks will come up one after another (or I guess it could be that one stalk will make four blooms too) this season.

The amaryllis bulbs I am growing now have sprouted their third stalks (got them from Scheepers) since November 10 with four or five blossoms on the end of each stalk....they are in potting mix, though. I have been surprised each time they have rebloomed and now I'm hoping for a fourth time!

good luck. t.

Hi! I have an amaryllis bulb I got 2 years ago, to be grown like you were saying, in water. It bloomed the first time I grew it, and never has again, for the last 4 times I've grown it. I have even waited for as much as 3-4 months with the bulb in a paper bag, drying out, and still no bloom. Also, the bulb is gradually dimminishing in size, and I thought they got bigger till they eventually split and made 2 bulbs.....maybe I just don't know anything bout them! lol Next time I grow it, I will try it in some soil :)

A fellow here at my work place started out many years ago with one Amaryllis bulb (in soil). It looked gorgeous with 6 red flowers having a golden hue. He kept the plant on our brightly lit corridor, never let it go dormant. He treated it like any other houseplant, watering when dry and fertilizing the pot along with his Begonias. A few years later the one- bulb- plant had grown into a permanently green, huge 3 bulb plant + bulblets in a 20 inch !!pot and shot out several stalks two times a year with 6 flowers each. It was outrageous!!
I(n the meanwhile the plant owner left and the plant got hacked apart.)

So much for Amaryllis dormancies.

haha RUK.....thanks for the info, I won't worry anymore bout it needing to go dormant.

Kim,
amaryllis can be grown in water. When you buy it, it will have all it needs to bloom (inside the bulb) and provided it does not topple over (it does that sometimes) you can get it to grow and flower in the vase.

I must disappoint you however, with the 4xyear blooming. No amaryllis does this. Some very large amaryllis plants may put out 2, or even 3 flower stems, but the ones at walmart usually put out one (1) only, but it does unfold 4 flowers ??!!!! If it is going to put out more flower stems it will do so within weeks of the first one. Do not put in fridge.

However, once it is done blooming, and you cut off the flower stem, the water contain no nutrition for the plant. Leaving it in water will not help the bulb. You would have to add liquid plant food to the water on a weekly or fortnightly basis (these amaryllis plants are very heavy feeders and should be fertilized at the "strong" recommendation on the bottle).

I would probably take the step and plant the bulb in a "flower pot" at this time, because caring for it is easier and fertilizing can be done by adding a 3 months slow release fertilizer such as OSMOCOTE (and no water changes, right ??)

For the plant to rebloom, you do not need to cool it. But it needs a 8-10 month growing period during which it will grow into a thicker bulb. What it needs now is LOTS of sun, water, and fertilizer. If you can, transplant it to the garden in full sun after last chance of frost (when it safe to put annuals outdoors) and fertilize it frequently. It should send up new growth (for every 3-4 leaves produced, a new flower stem will be initiated inside the plant).

Just one note: it takes 18 months from formation of a flower stem until flowering. Therefore, the flower stem you will see next year, has already been formed and is inside the bulb eventhough it just flowered. The flower stem which will form this spring as new leaves are produced, you will not see until 18 months from now.

To make the plant rebloom, dig the bulb up from the ground in september/october (before first frost) and put it in a dry cool spot (garage, basement) for the leaves to die back. This may take 4-5 weeks. Then you can cut the dead, withered leaves off at the nose of the bulb. Place the bulb in a dry and not too hot space (e.g. basement, or regular room. not a garage which can freeze, but don't put it on top of the fireplace either). In 3-4 month, a new flower stem will appear at the nose of the bulb (or leaves will, it depends a bit on the cultivar). At this time you can restart the bulb in soil (or water) and it should flower 6-8 weeks later.

Amaryllis will flower once per year. It can be made to reflower but need plenty of fertilizer, water and sunshine and must grow in circumference inorder to have enough "juice" to bloom.

Contrary to common belief, amaryllis does not need a cool period to rebloom. You dont even have to "rest it" .. you can continue to grow it as a houseplant and it will eventually bloom if you just make sure it gets sun, water, and fertilizer. However, if you grow it 8-10 months you can "program" it to flower at a specific time by giving it a rest and then restart it in which case it will bloom 4-6 weeks later. This way you can rebloom it for someones special day, etc.


I hope this helped you.

Here is a picture of my amaryllis when I harvested it from the garden this fall (October 1st):

kd,
Althought I don't plant in water, my amarylis does indeed bloom 4x a year and I've had times that it's bloomed more. I am not talking about one stalk with multiple flowers but 4 stalks from the same bulb in the period of a year. I know I've discussed this here on DG a few times and there are pictures floating around somewhere too.

I do agree that they are subject to rotting and doubt that you will be able to keep them in water very long Dimmer. But who knows, so as Walmart bulbs it's worth the experimentation if you want to continuously change the water. Dimmer If you only eneded up with foliage I's still not sure it would be a lost cause. I personally would pot them up tho as I believe they will last alot longer.

hi, kd--One more suggestion. When you pot the bulbs up be sure to leave 1/3 to 1/2 of the bulb exposed above the potting soil. This will help ward off 'red blotch' and rotting. Plant in a well draining soil (some suggest cactus growing soil) and don't overwater or get water on the exposed bulb or stem.

I didn't plant them with an exposed bulb the first time and got into a lot of trouble with 'red blotch', since planting them correctly, haven't had the problem...
t.

This is an excellent thread. A lot of goods comments.

Caron, nice to hear 'bout your flower-power amaryllis.

I don't doubt that you can get 4 flower stalks (I have had this, too) but this is not extremely commen for the small 22-24 cms bulbs from walmart. Just didn't want anyone to get excited and then let down.

If I am not mistaken, a flower stalk is initiated inside the bulb for every 4-5 leaves produced during the active growing season (do I remember right ??). Last year I had my plant producing 22 leaves, which would correspond to 4 flower stalks. I had the bulbs shown below in dormancy for 3 months, and now 2 flower stalks are showing. I would not be surprised (and definitely not disappointed either .. *lol*) if it sends out more than 2 flower scapes this year. However, I have never bought a bulb at discount stores that did this (but if you are lucky you once in a while can pickup nice stuff, eh ?)


As far as I remember, the bulbs grown in water (vases) rest on part of the glass vase with the roots growing into the water. The water level never reach so high as to touch the bulb. I don't think you have to worry about rotting, in fact, a poorly drained soil outdoors, or a pot where the saucer does not get emptied, are probably more likely causes of rotting whereas the vase type growing will usually not rot the bulbs.

What I did find, however, is that you need to remove any dead roots (not the plump life ones, but the dead ones) as they can foul up the water in no time. Changing water frequently is recommended. Once the roots start to grow, you can even add liquid fertilizer to the water every week and get good bulb grow. My main problem was keeping the darn thing straight on the vase without tipping over - especially when flowering.

Personally, I do prefer planted bulbs as opposed to water grown bulbs, but just saying that it can succesfully be done (I have done it several times because the family likes to watch the roots growing into the vase). If you fertilize the water, you can even get very good bulb growth.

AhhhhHah!!!

Ok the 4-5 leave per stalk would explain it.
Each one of my bulbs has anywhere from 15-20 leaves
You are right, the smaller bulbs (like from walmart) will not flower quite so abundantly and/or will take some time to grow to
a corresponding size to produce.
Looks lide the entire bulb is submerged from the picture (hence rot concerns)??

Nice picture kd!

What the heck is red blotch???

Ahh yes.. I saw the picture now, too (never did click on it the first time). It does look like the bulb being submerged. That certainly explains it. The vase I got with my bulbs was shaped so that the bulb rested on top but did not fall into the vase.

Red blotch, I believe, is a disease which create red markings on the flower stem and leaves, and will ruin the bulb in no time. It is a big problem because eventually the stem and leaves may become deformed and the areas which are red, rot easily (become soft, sunken and brown). Unfortunately a very large percentage of bulbs sold today are already infected with red blotch disease.

Note: amaryllis bulbs will get red scars at any point that is damaged (scales, leaves, bulb) and that is not sign of red blotch, but red markings especially on the bulb or lower part of the stem which can not be explained by mechanical damage to the bulb, should be investigated. If allowed to continue, it can spread to other bulbs.

So, k., are you saying if you think you have 'red blotch' you should get rid of the bulb? Or cut out the 'red blotch' on the bulb so it doesn't infect other bulbs? just wondering what you do for it...t.

This circular is extremely old...
http://mrec.ifas.ufl.edu/fdacs/Cir162.htm
here are more pictures and info
http://www.ibiblio.org/pbs/pbswiki/files/Sickleaf2.jpg
http://www.ibiblio.org/pbs/pbswiki/files/Sickleaf.jpg
http://www.clemson.edu/psapublishing/PAGES/HORT/HortLF63.pdf

More:
The leaves and flower stalks of amaryllis attacked by this fungus are characteristically bent or deformed at the point of attack. Diseased stalks and leaves have initial symptoms of small red spots, which enlarge, elongate and become sunken. (Note: Any injury to amaryllis tissue will produce a red pigment, not necessarily associated with this disease.) Small reddish brown to black fungus bodies (pycnidia) are visible in the diseased area with the aid of a hand lens.

And:
Amaryllis are subject to red spotting from various physiological causes, from injury and from mite and insect damage. This is not to be confused with the red blotch disease. Reddening from these causes appears as streaks, specks, or irregular patterns lacking definite margins or outlines.


Some information indicates that getting rid of the bulb is the only way to go but without corresponding leaf damage as shown or lesions on the bulb I personally might not bother. I can't seem to find any pictures of bulb damage for this disease. Maybe someone ellse can come up with one. I'd really like to see this.

Also can't find any other mention of a Hydrogen Peroxide solution (not specific and no proportions-go figure) as a treatment for dormant bulbs with this disease.





This message was edited Jan 23, 2005 10:32 AM

Here is a picture of one of my bulbs showing mechanical damage.

Here is one showing red streaking of the leaves but not with lesions. This seems to happen occasionally but otherwise healthy looking.

thanks k. and Caron for the info and close ups of amaryllis damage and the links. I think the Clemson brochure has excellent information for amaryllis care.

Now I'm not sure if the red spots are blotch or not on my bulbs. Could be mechanical damage...so I will just continue with them and see how they turn out. Some of them will bloom next week (I hope). t.