Traditionally, new Amaryllis bulbs are stored in a cool, dark area to keep them dormant. How cool, temperature of a refrigerator. In the North USA you usually can find a basement or unheated porch that has a fairly stable temperature. It is very difficult in the South USA to find a place that has a stable cool temperature. I compare Amaryllis bulbs to onions. Even though the bulb looks dry on the outside, it is very moist inside. If there isn't good ventilation, the bulbs can rot in storage. I don't recommend storing them in unopened shipping bags or the shipping box. That is asking for rot. The bulbs can break dormancy during storage, especially if the temperatures are not stable. Get those potted up right away. Some bulbs shouldn't be stored. If your bulb arrives with any top growth, pot it up immediately, since its already broken dormancy. Occasionally, I have that issue with bulbs from Royal Colors, which can be in the mail for a month. Also if the bulb shows injury, wounds from harvesting, or the beginnings of red blotch, get them potted immediately. They have a greater chance of rotting in storage. If the bulb is mushy, contact the nursery. If the red blotch is in a defined area, I use a sterile knife, cut out the red area as much as possible, dip the bulb in powdered cinnamon ( a natural antiseptic), plant and cross my fingers. I have a 50% success rate in saving those bulbs. As to Paul's question about waiting to see top growth before removing them from storage. That isn't necessary. You can remove them at will, and pot up, water and put in light. The bulbs will rapidly break dormancy at that point: the bulb thinks that spring has arrived. Cultivars of the Cybister group are very slow to break dormancy: you need to be quite patient with them. I've had them occasionally had them take 2-3 months to even start to show top growth.
