At Christmas we went to our daughter’s home. She had this amaryllis blooming on her table in the living room. Like so many of us, a little guidance on how to care for this gorgeous plant would be helpful. I will attempt to do that here. I will give you the “simple” guide, but I will provide you with some links that will go into much greater detail, so you can go as deeply into this as you’d like…or stop at the simplest!
I am going to assume you were given a blooming amaryllis bulb and it is beginning to fade. Your question now is probably, “What now?”
You can just treat it like any other houseplant in order to have it bloom again next year. BUT, there are a few things you need to do. As soon as the flower has faded, cut the flower stalk off a bit above the bulb-maybe an inch or two. DO NOT CUT OFF THE LEAVES. The leaves are needed to replenish the bulb with all the nutrients it utilizes to re-bloom next year! On the photograph of Christa’s blooming amaryllis, you’ll notice there are no leaves, or at least just a tiny one. (After you cut back the flower stalk, leaves will miraculously appear. Just let them grow until they fade as well!)
Place the pot near a sunny window, water and fertilize in the same manner you do with your other houseplants. Then, when all danger of frost is gone, sink the pot in an east or west facing spot in your garden.
As the leaves begin to turn yellow during the progressing season, cut back on any watering until the soil drys out and the leaves fade totally. At that time, your bulb is dormant and you can bring it back inside. If you have a cool spot (about 45*-55*f.) allow it to stay there for a couple of months. At that point, you can water it and set it back on your sunny windowsill and treat it the same as your other plants.
I promised you a couple of sites that would give you more in-depth direction and information. Here are two. One is from the University of Minnesota Extension and the other is from Iowa State University.
Here is a past Post from my New Hampshire Blog about how I dealt with Amaryllis there. It’s from a different climate and zone, so you may get a chuckle out of seeing the differences! Enjoy!
TUESDAY, MARCH 29, 2005
Amaryllis, indoor
My amaryllis has finished it’s blooming. Those bright, vibrant red blooms were a delight on the window sill in our northern climate. The Easter Cactus blooming right next to it was the same color. What a joy!
All things must end, however, so it faded and I cut the stem off just above the neck of the bulb. Strangly enough the bulb never put forth any leaves. NOW that the bloom is gone, however, the leaves are making an appearance. There are 4 or 5 of them popping up from the bulb.
I will now put the plant downstairs in the cooler basement and cut back a bit on the watering. Fertilization will not happen again until the weather is a bit warmer, and it goes outside.
I do not have an outdoor cold frame, so I’ll have to find a sheltered spot out in the garden when the frost is no longer a problem. In this northern climate, we joke that the “no frost dates” are from July 4th until Labor Day!
Anyway, it will be coddled until it goes outside and then I’ll put it in my chicken-wire box where it will be safe from critters, but able to enjoy the great outdoors. In the fall the reverse process will happen. I’ll stop the water again, bring the pot back inside, checking for insects, etc. It will stay in the basement while the foliage dies back. At that point (January or February), I’ll clean off the old foliage and dried scales, as well as take out about an inch of soil from around the bulb (gently) and add some rich soil and compost.
Amaryllis bulbs do best if pot-bound, so don’t be too quick to use a larger pot. Give them 2-4 years before this kind of a change.