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AMARYLLIS FROM SEED TO BLOOM

7/4/2016

20 Comments

 
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No, they're not blooming now. But the red and white of their spring blooms fit perfectly with today's Fourth-of-July theme. The third color, blue, is of course the sky!
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Here's the direct tie in to today - harvesting the papery seeds and sowing them!
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You can barely feel the real seed inside of these papery shards. Just scatter-plant them as they are, and barely cover with a thin layer of potting mix.
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It took a whole year for the seeds to germinate and develop to this extent. It's a slow process!
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Gently loosening the root ball reveals about 250 little bulblets, from 1/4" to 3/4" wide.
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Transplanting to give to other gardeners, I gathered 5 of the bulbs for each 4" container. You could also plant each bulblet in its own corner of the container.
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With my thumb and forefinger of each hand, I press the potting mix around the group of bulbs.
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A flat of transplanted bulbs ready for watering.
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For the larger bulbs, I planted them in the original 6-inch-deep container for more bulb- and root-growing space. I prefer SuperSoil brand potting soil for both sowing seeds and transplanting seedlings because of its consistently small-texture granules.
     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
  1. When blossoms fade, and there are seedpods, continue watering barely to keep the stalk turgid.
  2. When pods have matured completely and split open to reveal the papery black stacks of seeds, gather them into a container.You may or may not feel any actual seed in the papery pieces.
  3. Leave the container uncovered in a coolish dry place until you can plant them.
  4. Scatter the papery shards as best you can in a single layer onto a wide-space bed of potting mix that’s at least six inches deep for extensive root development.
  5. Barely cover seeds with another sprinkling of potting mix. This thin layer will anchor papery seeds and keep barely moist with each watering for better germination.
  6. Place container in a brightly-lit but shaded area with no direct sun to germinate.
  7. Keep barely moist.
  8. Seeds will sprout over a long period of time – from weeks to months. They’ll look like thin blades of grass.
  9. When most have germinated – the pot will look like it’s full of grass – move to a location where it’ll receive a couple of hours of sun each day. Keep soil mix barely moist.
  10. I waited a good year before checking root growth, and found bulblets ranging from one- to three-quarters of an inch wide.If I’d sown them with more space between, I’m sure more of the bulbs would be larger.
 
Transplanting into 4” containers for sharing with other gardeners.
  1. I filled each container halfway with potting mix.
  2. I gathered 5 bulbs together, holding at the point where the green foliage shoots come out of the bulb.
  3. Holding the bulb group over the potting mix with my left hand, I placed a small handful of potting mix to the right of the bulb group, and another handful to the left of the group.
  4. With my four fingers, I pressed the soil mix around the bulb group so it stayed upright.
  5. I watered the containers several times to assure that the potting mix was completely moistened.
  6. I place the containers in a brightly-lit but shaded area with no direct sun.
  7. After about a week, when the foliage stands upright and is vigorously growing, I’ll move the containers to a location where they’ll receive a couple of hours of sun daily.But, I’ll keep an eye on them relative to the summer’s blazing sun, and move them into more filtered light as necessary.
Transplanting into single containers for blooming.
  1. When individual bulbs are perhaps an inch wide, transplant them into individual containers – at least gallon-size – with fresh potting mix.
  2. Or, plant directly into the garden.  I’ve found them to be wonderfully drought-tolerant.
20 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 😊

Reply
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.

Reply
Mark
4/23/2019 08:08:00 am

Thanks a lot from the Netherlands! :)

Reply
Yvonne
4/23/2019 08:39:40 pm

My pleasure!

Reply
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!

Reply
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.

Reply
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.
Then you can plant them into their final place, either into 6+" pots or into the outdoor garden.

Reply
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!

saundra wallac link
6/28/2020 09:42:39 am

How long from seed to bloom??

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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.

Reply
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!

Reply
Yvonne Savio link
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!

Reply
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.

Yvonne Savio link
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!

Reply
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.
Wondering if the seeds are going to be viable ?
I have large clumps of amaryllis outside in my flower beds. Wondering if I should thin them out..

Reply
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?

Reply
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!

Reply



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