Amaryllis blooming for Christmas
Planting, Growing, and Caring for Amaryllis
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Did you grow amaryllis bulbs over Christmas? How do you care for this plant after it finishes blooming? See our plant guide on caring for amaryllis and what to do after the flowers fade.
About Amaryllis
Like daffodils or tulips, the amaryllis plant starts out as a bulb—often sold as part of a kit containing the bulb, a heavy pot, and some growing medium (ideally, a sterile, soilless planting mix). They are naturally spring-blooming bulbs, producing flowers at some point between late winter and mid-spring (February to April in the Northern Hemisphere). However, amaryllis are commonly forced to bloom earlier in winter, in time for the winter holidays.
After the flowers die back, the plant’s large leaves soak up sunlight for the rest of spring and summer, providing them with the energy they’ll need to bloom again in the following spring. With the arrival of autumn, the leaves die back, and the bulb goes dormant until later winter when the blooming process begins anew.
Amaryllis … or Not?
Historically, there has been some confusion regarding the name of this plant. Most amaryllis varieties grown today are hybrids and are not “true amaryllis”; they are instead part of the genus Hippeastrum, which is native to tropical parts of South America, from Brazil to the Andes. The true amaryllis—members of the genus Amaryllis—are native to South Africa and are also known as belladonna lilies (despite not being true lilies). That being said, both Hippeastrum and Amaryllis are part of the amaryllis family, so they are all amaryllis in some sense!
The name “amaryllis” comes from the Greek word amarysso, which means “to sparkle.”
Planting
Buying Amaryllis Bulbs
When shopping for amaryllis bulbs, you can buy the boxed kits that contain a bulb, a pot, and some soil. These make a nice gift, though there are usually not a lot of color choices—generally, they offer red, pink, and white. The flowers are usually the smaller variety, though they should bloom just fine if you follow directions.
Some garden centers offer larger bare bulbs that give you more choices of variety and larger sizes, and each one usually produces two or more flower spikes. Each spike will produce two to four large, trumpet-shaped blossoms.
Amaryllis bulbs are classified by size, which is determined by measuring around the outside of the bulb at its widest point. Generally, the larger the bulb, the more flowers the plant is capable of producing.
Another good reason for choosing a bare bulb is that you can see the condition of the bulb without having to rummage around in a box. Ensure it is heavy and firm—not moldy, squishy, or injured. It should have some fairly long fleshy roots attached, too.
How to Plant Amaryllis Bulbs
- If you can’t put the bulb in a pot right away, store it in a cool, dry, dark place until you can.
- Amaryllis bulbs may not bloom if they are in too large a pot. There should be no more than 1 inch of space on each side of the bulb, and 1/3 of the bulb should be above the soil line. They prefer to be a bit cramped (pot-bound).
- Use a well-draining potting mix.
- Before planting, soak the bulb’s roots in lukewarm water for a few hours to rehydrate them.
- Put a layer of soil in the bottom of the pot and position the bulb so the top sticks up above the rim of the pot. Firm the soil around the edge, exposing the top third of the bulb. If planted too deeply, the bulb may rot.
- Place the pot in a bright spot and water, but be wary of overwatering. Allow the soil to dry a bit between waterings.
- Expect beautiful, lily-like blooms in 6 to 8 weeks.
Tip: For a continuous display, start a few bulbs at 2-week intervals. As one finishes blooming, the next will be reaching its peak.
Growing
How to Care for Amaryllis Bulbs
- Display the amaryllis away from drafts in a bright room, but not in direct sunlight.
- Amaryllis plants prefer temperatures in the range of 60° to 70°F (15.5° to 21°C). Keep them away from freezing windows and drying radiators.
- Water sparingly. Only water when the top inch of potting mix is dry, taking care not to get water on the neck of the bulb.
- To promote blooming, use a houseplant fertilizer with high phosphorus content.
- When the flower stalk appears, move the amaryllis into brighter sunlight. Turn the pot every several days for even lighting and to prevent leaning.
- If the stalk starts to lean, insert a stake next to it, taking care not to disturb the bulb. Amaryllis flowers tend to be top-heavy, so stake proactively.
- Once your amaryllis is blooming, you can move it to a cooler location out of direct sunlight to make the blossoms last longer.
- After the flowers have faded, cut them off to prevent seed formation. Cut the stem off at the top of the bulb.
- Grow the amaryllis as a foliage plant through the spring and summer until the leaves turn yellow. Then, store the potted bulb on its side in a cool, dark room or basement to rest for 8 to 10 weeks. See more “post-bloom” tips below.
How to Care for Amaryllis After Flowering
One of the most frequently asked questions after the holidays is, “Now that my amaryllis has finished flowering, how can I get it to bloom again?” Those bulbs can take center stage again next Christmas if given proper care!
After blossoming, the bulb must grow and store food for the next season’s bloom. Often, the bulbs actually shrink in size from the stress of blooming and will need time to recover lost nutrients.
Once the blossoms have faded, cut off the flower stalk, but keep the leaves growing by placing the pot in a warm, sunny spot. Water regularly and fertilize weekly with a balanced houseplant fertilizer. This is when next year’s buds are formed within the bulb.
It takes a minimum of four leaves to produce one flower stalk because the buds form in the axils of every fourth bulb scale. Keep the plant growing all summer long; you can even move it outside for the summer. Bring it in at the end of August and cut OFF the watering. Let it dry out to induce a period of dormancy. Put the pot in a cool (around 50°F), dark place. Pull off any dried-up leaves.
To induce flowering in time for Christmas, bring the plant into a warm, sunny location and resume watering around in early to mid-November.
We would recommend repotting at this time to give the bulb better soil. Or, if you don’t feel like it, just scrape off the top 2 inches or so of loose soil and replace it with fresh soil. In about 6 to 8 weeks, the amaryllis should be in full bloom again.
What About Waxed Amaryllis Bulbs?
Waxed bulbs are intended for single use. They have all they need to bloom, but after that, they are meant to be discarded. However, you can and should remove blooms on a stalk once they have faded. Also, if a flower stalk itself is fading, often one or two more will start to grow; if desired, you can cut off the fading flower stalk to encourage more growth. (Leave any leaves, though.)
Once flowering has completed, instead of discarding the bulb, you can try to gently remove the wax (avoid disturbing the brown outer layer of the bulb as best you can). Sometimes, the bulb will have plastic wrap underneath the wax, and/or a wire base inserted into the bottom of the bulb; if so, then you want to carefully remove these also. Then, plant the bulb in a pot (not too large—about 1 to 2 inches wider than the bulb, and with drainage holes) filled with potting soil and set in bright indirect light in a warm area; water sparingly. Make sure that the top 1/3 of the bulb sticks above the soil. Follow care instructions as you would for a regular bulb (as mentioned in the article above).
Catherine Boeckmann
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I received an amaryllis earlier this year, it never bloomed and now still has one green leaf stem. Should I wait for it to turn brown or can I cut it off now and put it to sleep for a couple months?
Hi Rita,
Since your amaryllis did not bloom that is a sign that it did not store enough energy to produce flowers. A green stem will continue to promote photosynthesis, which creates energy that is stored in the bulb for future leaf growth and flowers. Depending on when you want it to bloom, you will want to keep the plant healthy and growing by placing it in a sunny location. It should continue to grow long, smooth leaves, which will promote photosynthesis. You will also want to continue to water and fertilize the plant regularly. If you want it to bloom at a certain time, plan to place it in a cool, dry, and dark location for 8 to 10 weeks prior to that time. Cut off watering during that dormancy period and let the leaves brown before removing. Once new growth appears, remove your amaryllis and place it in a sunny window.
Christmas 2022 Two stalks with 3 or 4 huge flowers each. Gorgeous!!! Kept it in a sunny warm spot and the leaves looked so healthy and vibrant. It is now November, no yellow leaves, still lovely, healthy, and green. What am I supposed to do so that it blooms this Christmas?
Hello, Peggy—
Thanks for sharing your blooming success! After blossoming, the bulb needs to grow and store food for its next season. Once the blossoms have faded, cut off the flower stalk and keep leaves growing by placing in a warm sunny spot… seems like you are all set there. It takes a minimum of flour leaves to produce one flower stalk.
To allow it to grow and store food, we recommend bringing it in at the end of August and cutting off watering. It needs to dry out to induce a period of dormancy—pull off any dried leaves and store the pot in a dark place around 50 degrees, then we would recommend moving back to a sunny location and watering in mid-November, for a Christmas bloom.
We recommend putting your amaryllis to sleep now… and waking it up in mid-January to try for some Valentine’s Day blooms!
—The Editors
Moved to Southern Georgia (USA ) in January saw these growing near the patio. Are these a special variety and how do I care for them. Done blooming. Obviously perennials here. Beautiful .
What about bulbs that produce flowers but have no leaves. When the bloom is faded, cut just it off and leave the stem until it fades? Or cut the stem also. The stems are thick and green when the flower fades - is that a help to feed the bulb? I have three amaryllis' that have produced each a stems and flowers but have no leaves. And more with lots of leaves.....
Hi, Cathy,
Some types of amaryllis, such as Dutch types, tend to flower before the leaves emerge. After a flower fades, cut it off from the flowering stalk, but leave the green stalk which, as you surmised, helps to feed the bulb. Wait until the stalk browns/fades before removing it. Leaves should appear a bit later.
I was given so me of my Nanas amaryllis bulbs in dried soil in a pot, they had sat in a garage somewhere for a long time, but there are some still hard but cut back and very dry?? Anyway to save, Id love to try!!!
Why is the main stem growing skew or at a angle it is flowering great
Hi, Gary, Hard to tell exactly. It could be the weight of the flower heads causing the stem to lean, or it might be the placement in the pot (which you can not do anything about now; if you remove it from the pot now, you will disturb it and lose everything). It might be cramped in the pot or maybe it was potted haphazardly. If you decide to try to keep it for future blooms, you could repot it before the next flowering period. See details above about keeping an amaryllis.
