Many thanks for your question bsharf.
I'm not sure it will help but here is the long version of the story:
Back in the mid-to-late 90s my wife befriended an older woman when we lived in upstate NY. This woman had emigrated from Germany some 50 years prior and brought with her seeds of the plant I am trying to identify. We moved to Pittsburgh in 2000 whereupon my wife cultivated the seeds in small pots, nurtured them and they began to grow. In 2006 we moved to San Francisco and because this plant had such a deeply held memory of her relationship with the woman in NY it was the only plant we took with us to CA. Subsequently, my wife continued to nurtured the plant, never getting more then 2 leaves at a time; we were doubtful it would ever bloom. My wife passed in 2015 and I moved back to Pittsburgh and for similar reasons brought the plant with me. My wife had divided the bulb a few years before and I repotted both in a larger pot. Since then the bulbs have produced multiple leaves each year, no more than 6 on a bulb, yet still no indication of a forthcoming bloom. Wonder of all wonders, in March there was the appearance of a scape much to my elation. Last week the two flower scape bloomed into what is depicted in the pictures some 20+ years after the initial seed sowing. Oh, and yes, my wife did tell me what it was many years ago and I have since forgotten. My bad.
The color in the picture is true, since this is the very first blooming it is unknown if 2 blooms are typical. The plant has never been in a garden and has always been treated as a house plant. The characteristics, currently, seem to align closely with
Amaryllis Hippeastrum. The leaves are taller than the flower and the bulb is NOT one of the giant species. Trying to identify the species has been a challenge.
Regguy
