| Fourth-of-July is mostly apparent – at least in past and future prospect – in my amaryllis. It’s spring bloom was striped red and white, and – although it’s a stretch of concept – the blue sky behind it completed the holiday color triumvirate. The current day’s activity is in gathering the seed for a billion more future plants. As my husband observed many years ago, “Gardeners have faith in the future.” Indeed. We gather seed, prepare soil, sow seed, water, wait in faith and hope, mulch seedlings, continue watering and protecting, transplant, wait and water and mulch some more, and finally enjoy thriving plants and possibly blooms and fruit. Maybe. Sometimes this process may be only a couple of weeks or months or years. For my amaryllis venture, it’s been one year so far, from when I gathered the seed a year ago, to today’s transplanting of bulblets. And it’ll be another couple of years before the bulbs are large enough to bloom. So, yes, definitely faith in the future “payback” of all this effort. But what great fun and expectation in the meantime! Here’s the process, so you can do the same with your own amaryllis seeds. Starting Seeds
Transplanting into 4” containers for sharing with other gardeners.
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22 Comments
Linda Marie
4/30/2017 02:44:06 pm
Thank you so much. Just planted the black, flat seeds in multiple pots. So excited and appreciative of your help. Now we water and wait 😊
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Yvonne
5/1/2017 05:37:59 pm
Great! I was amazed that so many - perhaps all? - of those papery seeds actually germinated. Good luck!
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Linda
5/1/2017 05:45:07 pm
Thank you so much for the positive feedback. I'm really excited about this. I had 6 flowers. They bloomed a few weeks ago. I didn't even know they were there. Just bo the house. Now I'm excited about having them all over.
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Mark
4/23/2019 08:08:00 am
Thanks a lot from the Netherlands! :)
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Yvonne
4/23/2019 08:39:40 pm
My pleasure!
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Marianne
8/1/2019 03:10:12 pm
So glad to have found this site! I planted my seeds a week and a half ago, and nothing has happened. Now I know not to give up, and will wait another 3 weeks. So excited to see if it works!
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Yvonne
8/1/2019 03:27:01 pm
Hi, Marianne -- Yes, keep soil mix moist (not soggy), in filtered or bright (but not direct) light, and wait. The last batch I'd sown took several weeks.
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Lynda Eichorst
8/7/2019 01:05:47 pm
My seeds sprouted! They are 1”-2” tall. My question is I live in Texas and not sure if I should plant them outside or keep them inside until next spring? Our winters aren’t too bad but wondering if they can tolerate cold temperatures?
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Yvonne Savio
8/7/2019 02:59:44 pm
Hi, Lynda -- The little seedlings will need to develop for another year into 1/2" bulblets before being up potted or set outdoors. So, repot them individually into 4" pots and keep moist throughout the fall and winter so they can develop fuller root systems and that bulb.
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Michael Hudson
4/11/2020 01:58:38 pm
I'm in College Station/Central Texas and mine have been outside for years and doing great. The current seedlings are about 1 year old, seeded and growing on their own.
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Yvonne Savio
4/11/2020 11:25:50 pm
Yay, Michael!
Yvonne Savio
6/28/2020 12:29:59 pm
Hi, Saundra -- My third paragraph indicates the long process -- Sometimes this process may be only a couple of weeks or months or years. For my amaryllis venture, it’s been one year so far, from when I gathered the seed a year ago, to today’s transplanting of bulblets. And it’ll be another couple of years before the bulbs are large enough to bloom.
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Vicky
9/7/2020 09:59:42 am
I have planted Amaryllis seeds many times over the years so I have some unusual Amaryllis' already. I am very familiar with what the seeds look like etc. But one of my grown from seed Amaryllis' bloomed and then developed really large seed pods. I was excitedly waiting to get the seeds after the pod matured. When it did finally mature, what came out were what looks like small gladiolus bulbs. Have you ever seen something like that? I really want to grow them so just trying to get some advice. I can't find anything about it online even. It is so strange to me. Thanks!
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9/7/2020 02:59:12 pm
Hi, Vicky -- How interesting! Perhaps the little bulblets are another stage in the reproductive cycle of whatever variety you've "developed"! In several mentions online, the terms "bulblets" and "offsets" are used only regarding coming from the mother bulb, not the top of the seedstalk. Do plant them, and see what you get!
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Vicky
9/7/2020 08:46:46 pm
Hi Yvonne! I just solved the mystery. I remembered how different the bloom looked on this particular "Amaryllis". The flowers were fragrant, white with long thin petals and they branched up and out from the main stalk. In fact, normally I see a seed pod develop right at the base of the Amaryllis blossom, but this one developed a pod well below the base of the blossom, where the branches met back at the main stalk. This was a Crinum Lily! Amaryllis and Crinum are both part of the Amaryllidaceae family. So, I guess some how I got a Crinum from my Amaryllis'. I am excited to see what I end up with from these bulbs and quite glad I now have some info to help me care for them. Just thought I would share what I found out. Thank you so much for responding to my question earlier. 9/7/2020 09:16:05 pm
Hi, Vicky -- Oh, what fun, rethinking and remembering and observing ends up providing us with more info and a discovery! Yay!
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Linda Brown
12/29/2020 09:49:49 pm
I am waiting for my first seeds. Seed pod is starting to turn brown but the flower stalk has dropped about halfway down and seems to be very limp.
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Lorraine Weaver
2/28/2021 03:21:13 pm
I was given a waterless amaryllis. This is the first time I've ever had an amaryllis give a seed head. Is the care for a waterless one different than a regular grow-in-the-ground bulb?
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Yvonne Savio
2/28/2021 05:20:03 pm
Hi, Lorraine -- I've never heard of a "waterless" amaryllis. By "seed head" I assume you mean that the bloom has withered and formed a pod with the black papery seeds in it. Please email me at GardeningInLA@gmail.com and send a photo or description of what the package or other information says. Thanks!
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Carolina
4/19/2021 10:15:34 am
I planted seeds a year ago and I got two small green leaves from two of them. I did have them outside during the summer but they really never grew. They were about 1 and 1/2 inch only and in the fall they did die, at least I thought they did. They came up this spring and are now the same size as my newly propagated seeds. What am I doing wrong? They are in individual pots. How much nutrient should i give them? Should they be under direct light or not. Indoor or cold garage? Did you have them outdoor for a year?
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Yvonne Savio
4/19/2021 11:12:57 am
Hi, Carolina --
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