Color is the key to winter cheer. Few plants give you more concentrated brilliance than the bulbs you see here, so plant some this month as insurance against midseason blues.
Unusual but easy is Veltheimia forest lily. Even when it is not in flower, its rosettes of waxy green leaves are decorative.
Veltheimia likes a mixture of equal parts topsoil, leaf mold, and sand on top of a drainage layer of pebbles or gravel.
Plant the bulbs singly in 5- or 6-inch pots, with at least half of each bulb above the soil.
Place the pot in a cool room—the cooler the temperature, the richer the foliage will be. In extreme heat, the leaves become soft and floppy.
After the flowers fade, feed and water regularly until the foliage dies down naturally.
Then gradually let the soil dry out. In May, set the pot outdoors under a tree for the summer. The bulb will grow in the fall for another year of bloom.
Spectacular Hybrid Amaryllis Family
Few indoor flowering bulbs equal the hybrid amaryllis for spectacular size and brilliance, and you can force it into bloom with little effort.
Other members of the amaryllis family—Sprekelia formosissima, the Jacobean lily, and Haemanthus, the blood lily—are grown in the same way.
Bulbs usually start during late November and December, but they grow as well in January or February, flowering in 6 to 9 weeks—even as late as June. Nerine, another relative, is planted in August for autumn bloom.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Select a pot 2” inches wider than the bulb, place drainage material in the bottom, and add a few inches of soil.
- Set the bulb so the upper half is exposed and the lower half firmly embedded.
- Water thoroughly and place the pot where it will get some light but no bright sun until the flower bud emerges.\Keep the soil moist, but never let it get soggy, or decay will set in, and you will lose the bulb.
Roots begin to develop as soon as the bulb is well established.
When the flower bud appears, move the bulb into direct sunlight, where it will grow and develop richly textured blooms on stout stems.
Turn the pot frequently, or the stems will begin leaning toward the light.
For longer-lasting flowers, take the full-blooming plant out of the sun.
After the blooms have faded, cut off the flower stem where it joins the neck of the bulb.
To ensure flowers the following year, encourage the growth of the straplike foliage by watering your plants regularly and feeding them at two-week intervals.
In early fall, you can give the plants a two-month rest.
Some amaryllis is evergreen, so if the leaves show no signs of dying down naturally, keep them growing indefinitely.
Care of Clivia
Clivia, another amaryllis relative, calls for slightly different care.
When in active growth and about to produce flowers, it needs lots of water and responds best to biweekly feedings of liquid fertilizer. The 3-foot glossy leaves are decorative all year.
After flowering—which usually occurs in January or February—water more moderately, and in summer, sink the pot up to the rim in the garden.
It is natural for the roots to creep to the surface, so you needn’t replant your growing Clivia until they crack the pot.
Old-Time Favorite Calla Lilies
Calla lilies are old-time favorites that you will find easy to grow in rich soil. Start them indoors in pots during October and November.
You can hasten their bloom by keeping the soil moistened with warm water. Feed with liquid cow manure every two weeks.
Once you have enjoyed the beauty of these six bulbs, you will look around for others to grow in your window.
Allium, alstroemeria, Bessera, gladiolus, ixia, and Lapeyrouse are on my list of worthwhile indoor bulbs.
They more than repay you for the small effort needed to release their built-in color.
44659 by Daniel J. Foley