Surfeit of amaryllis

Discussion in 'Indoor and Greenhouse Plants' started by soccerdad, Jan 5, 2019.

  1. soccerdad

    soccerdad Active Member 10 Years

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    A few years ago I planted several amaryllis seeds and four of them germinated. One flowered early last September and although the flower stalk has gone to the compost pile long ago, it still has several large upright leaves looking as good as new - which scares me because I expected them to die and for the plant then to go through some sort of dormant period. Anyway, unless someone suggests otherwise I will just leave it to do whatever it wants to do. My question today concerns two of the other three pots.

    Here are two pictures of one of them and you see that it seems to contain several plants. One is in the greenhouse under lights and thriving; this one is indoors near a window and its leaves are drooping, turning yellow and dying. No problem, but my concern arises from the fact that it look like there are several plants in the pot.

    That seems impossible, for I was dead certain that only one seed germinated in this pot. I am afraid to take it (them?) out and wash off the dirt to see what is there, in case I harm whatever is in the pot and in case there is something that I should then do immediately - and won't do. But I don't feel comfortable just leaving it alone.

    Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should do?


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    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 7, 2019
  2. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

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    You planted seeds, but Amaryllis develop bulbs, and those bulbs develop offsets. Nothing impossible has happened here! I don't know if it's better to separate them, but if you like what these look like and want to be sure that the next generation of plants all look the same, you need to propagate them by separating the offsets. You can read about it here:
    Amaryllis Bulbs Propagation: Separating Amaryllis Bulbs And Offsets
     
  3. soccerdad

    soccerdad Active Member 10 Years

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    But wouldn't I need a bulb before bulblets would appear? There is no sign of any bulb, and this pot most definitely did not flower.
     
  4. soccerdad

    soccerdad Active Member 10 Years

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    This is the one that bloomed and I could see it producing bulblets...

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  5. thanrose

    thanrose Active Member 10 Years

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    No, you don't need what you would call a bulb for a bulbing plant to offset. The tissue on the root end has to think it's a bulb, but you might not see it yet, sort of like an adolescent human that thinks she's all grown up. All it has to do is produce enough viable tissue for a scale to somewhat separate from the below ground stem and then detach, or run away from home.

    I gave my sister some amaryllis that I had nurtured from tiny things over the years, probably some from seed. Many were flowering size and I planted them in a good location in her Jacksonville FL yard. She has a distinctly plastic thumb but thinks she's Martha Stewart. All suffered from neglect, from drought, from poor soil chemistry. After several years, I dug them up at the beginning of last summer. There were very few recognizable bulbs, but many separate plants. I put most of them in two very large planters, and they look great, green and lush even now. Some winter season atrophy and yellowing and no indications of any buds forming yet. Admittedly, I water too much at times instead of letting them go fully dormant, so I may not see anything this year. Won't know until maybe April.

    Be patient, and you will be rewarded.
     
  6. soccerdad

    soccerdad Active Member 10 Years

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    OK, the "plants" are now each growing like mad in my south-facing window. Five in a 6" pot which, I fear, only has room for one mature plant. So I should take them out, separate the small ones and plant them each in their own pot? That seems obvious, and anyway I can't see what else I could do, but I thought I'd ask before doing something irreversible...
     
  7. thanrose

    thanrose Active Member 10 Years

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    Generally fall or winter flowering, so separating them now is probably not a bad idea. Ease them out of the pot, try not to cut or break any rootlets. You could leave two or three in a pot, and then next dormancy in January or so separate them one to a pot if it seems necessary.
     
  8. pmurphy

    pmurphy Contributor 10 Years

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    Amaryllis are rather hardy and will survive Vancouver winters outside if they are kept dry during the winter months - I planted 3 unwanted "Christmas gifts" in my covered garden in 2016 and not only do they come back but they flower in summer, during what would be their natural cycle.

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    these photos are last summer
     
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  9. soccerdad

    soccerdad Active Member 10 Years

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    This is the one that flowered last year. The leaves are all many months old; no new ones have emerged this year. But it is about to bloom. If I cut off the long droopy and ugly leaves will new ones grow and the plant survive?

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    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 16, 2019

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