It’s truly a sight to behold when that aristocrat of bulbs, the amaryllis, produces its regal bloom in time to celebrate the festive Christmas season.
You can grow Christmas-blooming Dutch amaryllis bulbs right in your own living room. Van Meeuwen’s Superiors amaryllis gives you a choice of pure white, deep red, salmon, orange, and striped blooms.
Early-Flowering Amaryllis
The flowers are “ready-packed” inside the bulb when you receive them. All you have to do is pot it, say in early November, and for about eight weeks, sit back and admire your “pride and joy.”
G. C. van Meeuwen & Sons, Heemstede, Holland, have developed these early-flowering amaryllis.
In cooperation with Dr. Ida Luyten of the Laboratory for Plant Physiology Research. Wageningen. Holland, who had also worked on the vegetative propagation of amaryllis.
Previously, amaryllis could not be counted on to bloom until sometime in March or even April.
Flowers of Treated Bulbs
The flowers of the specially treated bulbs are as large as those of the untreated bulbs.
Large bulbs usually produce two, sometimes three, flower spikes. Each may bear from three to four flowers about 8″ inches across.
Plant the bulb in a large full-depth pot. A pot that is at least an inch wider than the bulbs is sufficient.
The soil should be loose and moisture-retaining. Leafmold or rotted cow manure may be added, also bulb fiber. Do not remove the old roots which are attached to the bulbs.
Development of the Roots
In many instances, these will help feed the plants, and new breaks will start from them. Plant the bulb so that one-third is buried and two-thirds is visible.
At the start, water the bulb sparingly; the soil should be just damp, never soaking wet.
Too much water at the beginning will retard the development of the roots, which will harm the whole plant.
You can place the pot anywhere in the house; a temperature of 70° degrees Fahrenheit will not harm it.
Dramatic Blooms in Christmas
Flowering takes place about eight weeks after planting the bulb.
As a rule, the flower stem appears first. After the first flowers have bloomed, the foliage comes.
At this stage, you should give the plant a little more water but not allow the soil to become soaked. Growth continues all summer.
When the foliage has died down, the bulb should be removed to a fairly cool spot to mature.
It may be left in the pot. In November, the bulb should be replanted in fresh soil, and the whole cycle started over again with dramatic blooms in time for Christmas!
44659 by George Alders