Florida Gardening: Need Help to Re-bloom Florida Amaryllis for Holidays, 1 by Wyckoff

Wyckoff wrote:
Wonderful, wonderful replies!

To wren107 in Jacksonville: Fairy Tale is indeed similar but mine don’t have enough red.
http://www.usna.usda.gov/PhotoGallery/HippeastrumGallery/Ama...
Their photo of Sydney is closer but still not quite. Emaryllis tends to agree:
http://www.emaryllis.com/page.aspx
I kind of hope they are Old Mead Stripes but I can’t find any descriptions other than “red with a white stripe and white with a red stripe”. Dr Mead grew Amaryllis close to my location back in the 1880s thru 1920s but I doubt mine are old enough. Yours certainly are!

To tarziesgirl in DeLand: Too deep is certainly a problem. I have gotten more than a few bulbs when people offer theirs to me. “They used to bloom fine but they haven’t done much the last few years. You’re welcome to them.” Amaryllis have contractile roots. The roots pull the bulb deeper and deeper but don’t know when to stop. Amaryllis beds that decline in blooming generally just need to be lifted. I do that, reset the largest bulbs and then take a few loose offsets as payment. Next thing I hear is how wonderful they are doing.
All mine are pot grown and planted no deeper than “just off the shoulder”. Some are mid-belly deep and a few are barely hip deep. The ones in the photo in my original post do like to be crowded. They multiple so fast they will break the pots if I don’t transplant most every year.
Since we are both in west Volusia County, perhaps you know of a “pot exchange”. Friends supply me with every size and type of pot imaginable. Some I use but many are too small or too large. I’d love to find an exchange!

To Plant_Thang in Jacksonville: Don’t you just love good resource books! So: Sept 1 put the pot on its side and let it dry out. Wait 4 to 6 weeks, then repot with fresh soil, add light and water. I will try it!

To everyone else reading this: Please keep the suggestions coming for Re-blooming Florida Amaryllis for the Holidays. I have enough bulbs to test more than 1 method.

Thanks to everyone!

Candace