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Sep 22, 2016 9:54 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Tienito
Rhode Island (Zone 6b)
Amaryllis Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers
Hi all. A co-worker of mine, an older lady, has been telling me about her "two-leaf" plant for about a year. It just grows two leaves and doesn't do anything else, despite her efforts. Finally she put it under a table, ignored it for a few months, and what do you know, it eventually grew... two leaves! Curious, I asked to see a picture, and was able to identify it as an amaryllis. She gave it to me as an assignment. I re-potted the thing in better soil and am setting it out right now, since we're still getting some warm days.

Thumb of 2016-09-23/Tienito/6fc6e8

There it is. The bulb was small and light, with rotted roots underneath. The big leaf is leaning against the bricks, otherwise it flops over. My question is this:

As I understand it, the leaves feed the bulb during the growing season. How long should I wait before cutting off these leaves and let the bulb go dormant? I doubt it will will bloom this winter, since it's so weak, but should I start it like normal after it had been dormant for a couple of months? I'm really hoping that it can be saved and will bloom again some day, to my co-worker's delight!

Also, I bought my first amaryllises after this: Apple Blossom and Orange Sovereign. That'll have to do for now. Something tells me that I will be collecting more as time goes on!

Thanks in advance for sharing your experience and opinion.
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Sep 23, 2016 8:10 AM CST
Moderator
Name: Rj
Just S of the twin cities of M (Zone 4b)
Forum moderator Million Pollinator Garden Challenge Plant Identifier Garden Ideas: Level 1
You do not want to cut off the leaves, let the pot dry out before putting it inside for the winter if you want it to go dormant, the leaves will yellow and you can pull them off as they dry up. Or place the pot in a sunny warm spot and let the leaves grow all winter and put it out in the spring
If the bulb is small and light, it will take awhile for the bulb to rebuild itself
As Yogi Berra said, “It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future.”
Last edited by crawgarden Sep 23, 2016 10:09 AM Icon for preview
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Sep 23, 2016 1:42 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Tienito
Rhode Island (Zone 6b)
Amaryllis Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers
Thank you so much for that info! I was indeed going to cut off the leaves, but will follow your advice instead.
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Sep 24, 2016 6:37 PM CST
Name: Christie
Central Ohio 43016 (Zone 6a)
Plays on the water.
Amaryllis Permaculture Sempervivums Roses Bookworm Annuals
Composter Hybridizer Cat Lover Garden Ideas: Master Level
It is my understanding that Amaryllis bulbs work on 2 year's of flowers at one time. So, something that blooms today was actually started inside the bulb 2 years ago. And next year's bloom actually started to form last year. That means that, since the bulb did not have good care, it could take 2 years for it to actually bloom. So, don't be disappointed if you don't get a bloom at first, just keep giving it good care.
Plant Dreams. Pull Weeds. Grow A Happy Life.
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Sep 25, 2016 12:58 PM CST
Thread OP
Name: Tienito
Rhode Island (Zone 6b)
Amaryllis Irises Native Plants and Wildflowers
cwhitt said:It is my understanding that Amaryllis bulbs work on 2 year's of flowers at one time. So, something that blooms today was actually started inside the bulb 2 years ago. And next year's bloom actually started to form last year. That means that, since the bulb did not have good care, it could take 2 years for it to actually bloom. So, don't be disappointed if you don't get a bloom at first, just keep giving it good care.


Thank you very much for that info. I've read somewhere that Amaryllises have a 2-year flowering cycle, but didn't know what was meant by that. Now I know! Good news is, after a watering and several days in good sun, the rescue's leaves are actually standing up on their own. This gives me hope that it'll survive, maybe to bloom one day.
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Sep 26, 2016 4:32 AM CST
Name: Barbara
Palm Coast, FL
Amaryllis Master Gardener: Florida Region: Florida Dog Lover Daylilies Container Gardener
Cat Lover Butterflies Birds Forum moderator Garden Ideas: Level 1
Its looks surprisingly well, all things considered. Just let it grow over the winter as a houseplant, don't force dormancy unless it goes into it on its own, and it will bloom again in the future.
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Sep 26, 2016 7:57 AM CST
Name: Christie
Central Ohio 43016 (Zone 6a)
Plays on the water.
Amaryllis Permaculture Sempervivums Roses Bookworm Annuals
Composter Hybridizer Cat Lover Garden Ideas: Master Level
I do think it will survive. It will just need some TLC from you for a while, but I see blooms in your future!
Plant Dreams. Pull Weeds. Grow A Happy Life.
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