Yardening Dec 2015 into 2016

Ric and others---
I can re-post the information by Jack Eden (ages ago) on Amaryllis care.
It will be 2 pages. He is the one I learned from--like many other sources in
the 60's when i was a newbie gardener. He was an amazing gardener.
I think he is still alive--you can Google Jack Eden.

I always cut back the necks to make it easier for the new growth to emerge.
Just don't cut wayyyy down--as you will be cutting the tips of the new leaves
or bloom off. Just cur off the "junk" that developed in the previous growing season.

I have pictures--but not sure if I can find them so easily. Will try.

BOY! That IS a lot of roots!!! Don't know what to tell you.
My hunch is that I would cut them back by half??? That is just way too many roots.
I think a bulb can take that kind of trimming--just guessing now...
Spider plants can! Brugs can! Many other plants can....
I think that if an Amaryllis were grown in a pot--not in the ground--you would never see
roots like that.
Sorry--I cannot find my pictures of the cut back necks. I posted it once here....
I think you can envision what I am talking about.

Here are pictures of the 2 pages from jack Eden's "year Round Care of Amaryllis.
Every page in this garden Calendar had amazing information on many holiday plants.

Gita

Thanks for the info Gita.

They had the DC cherry blossoms on the Weather Channel this morning. Man, if only it was ACTUALLY that time!

OOPs--
Somehow the same picture posted twice.
Here are both pages again. I rotated them so you can read
right off the screen. g.

I missed the photo, but I don't cut off roots on my amaryllises... if you can find a pot to accommodate them, they will reward you with bigger bulb growth and more babies...

I wrote a couple of "amaryllis 101" articles for DG. LMK if you need links

Jill, should I worry about how long and strappy and floppy the leaves on my old amaryllis bulbs? Seems like they are so much floppier in these out years than they ever were the first year I planted the bulbs. Also, not getting any flower stalks...

I just cut off any foliage I don't like. As long as the bulb is big enough, I generally get blooms before spring on any amaryllises left "in the green" (no dormant period).

I've put mine into a dormant period now for several months but they've been kept at room temperature. Do I really need to put them in a cool spot for a while or can I just start watering them again?

Holly, both the Dracena and Sago palm you gave me are thriving. Thanks again.

They are looking good so glad you are enjoying them.

Lisa, those sure are big plants. I remember you trying to fit them in the borrowed friend's car LOL. Ditto what Holly said - they are looking good!

Sequoia, just start watering them again. They'll put up buds and then leaves... a few varieties do it the other way around, leaves first, but mostly you see a fat bud peek out before anything else happens.

Ok, so I don't have to put them in a chill for a period of time then?

Seems the skip to new issue has been resolved(she said hopefully).

They do look happy, Lisa.

I have had some luck rooting things by putting them in water along with my corkscrew willow. I have read that corkscrew emits something into the water making it an ideal rooting compound.
Beautiful camellias. I have one here at our new place, but it doesn't bloom all that well. It's a healthy looking bush, but mostly gets buds that don't seem to want to open, they dry up? It blooms a little, but nothing like the pics here.
Merry Christmas everyone!

Haighr, Willow water is well known to aid in rooting.
Another rooting tip that I picked up a few years ago. When rooting in water put some sphagnum moss into the jar it will help the roots become stronger. Kinda a bridge between rooting in water and rooting in soil. Helps when you transplant into soil. Only issue is if you root more than one cutting you may have some trouble separating the rooted cuttings.

Like Sally said, we can always find something to do! I've started doing one thing I intended to do last winter....getting rid of Japanese Pachysandra growing in a shrub bed. I got tired of pulling it up, so I decided to cut it down low and build "lasagna" on top of it instead: about 8 sheets of newspaper covered by shredded leaves and a mix of shredded pine and cypress.

I forgot to add a few "What's wrong with these pictures?".

#1 - I spotted flower buds on this Lonicera sempervirens (Coral Honeysuckle) while putting up Christmas lights.

#2 - A lone BES flower still hanging in there.

I still have a few plants still blooming. I also saw a flower bud on one of my Hellebores. I'm pretty excited to see it bloom because I bought it a couple years ago as a young plant and it's never bloomed.

Remember, amaryllises are tropical -- they don't need chilling. Dry & cool is generally enough to put them in dormancy... if they're not actively sprouting greenery, they are dormant. I let a few of my garden bubs go dormant just by digging them and tossing into a box in the basement. I'll pot them after Christmas and start giving them water, and I'll enjoy their blooms in Feb. One year I had bouquets with late amaryllises and early daffodils... LOL

Alright, I feel like they should be repotted but I've read they like to be pot bound. I know the one needs repotted because it's in one of those cheapie plastic pots where the plant gets too heavy for it and it falls over. Thanks for the tips.

Jeff,
You can cure the "falling over" by planting your Amaryllis in a heavy clay, or stone, pot.
It is worth the expense--as your A. will live in it for a long time.
Use a pot just 1" (all around) bigger than the bulb. Leave the top 1/3rd of the bulb
above the soil. Use a gritty soil (cactus soil?) as that will hold the bulb in place better.
If the roots are all tall and tangled just trim the older roots back...selectively.
Then pot in fresh soil mix.

Here is what my Amaryllis all look like right now. They are all in my cool shop.
Because some are growing new leaves already--I need to cut the necks back NOW. Will do it today.

1--My big, old pot of 5 bulbs
2--Picture of all the smaller pots
3--Close-up of an 8" pot that holds 2 good-size bulbs.

This last pic. will be a good example of a "before" and "after" trimming of the necks.
Will do that today as well. Gita

Where do you keep them when they go dormant?

Sequoia, Sometimes when I am pressed for time or if it is just inconvenient to re-pot I will set a potted plastic pot in a terra cotta or heavier pot. That usually works for me as a quick fix. I do that alot with the blooming orchids when they are brought up to the house.
Can't get over all the trees that are budding out, wonder what will happen this spring.

Jeff--
My house is a 4-level split--which means always running up and down stairs.
Top most to bottom-most--16 stair-steps!
The lowest level is 80% underground--and it is cool down there. Usually about 58*.
It is also dank. I run a dehumidifier down there when it rains...

Anyway--this level was my EX's Shop---full of tools and gadgets that he used to
build all the wonderful rooms and floors and entertainment centers, etc..etc...
Level #3 is the club room level--where many a party was hosted--people crammed
all over the place. No one minded. My EX converted a plain concrete basement area
to this beauriful club room area with a wet bar, a bathroom and his office--now a
comfy guest bedroom with access to a private, full bath.
He had the most amazing talents in this area.
Nowadays--the SHOP has become an area where I keep a lot of junk--and the
hundreds of pots, of all sizes, that I bring home from the HD. It also holds a lot of unused lumber and plywood sheet pieces too. My old, unused bike, 3 not-functioning
swivel rocker chairs, etc..etc...etc... It is a JUNK ROOM...
It is down there that I keep my plants that need dormancy. Like my two HUGE
Clivias (see pic) as well as the potted Amaryllis and dug up Canna roots. Anything...everything.. There is an old, big table-surface that held his 12" bench saw.
It is now MY work area where I pot plants, do seedlings, transplant things, etc.
It is "No Man,s Land"....I have to appologize to anyone that wants to go down there...
I can fling soil around and it does not matter.
A bloom and dust pan cleans it up.

SO--to answer your question--"Where do I keep my dormant plants--look here...

1--This is right over the sump pump area..and below shelves loaded with potting stuff
2--Here are my 2 big Clivias which sit on small tables on top of the work table so they can get enough light from the shop lights just above. Sometimes they bloom here.

Hanging my head in shame--here are some more views of my basement...

You could play "Where,s Waldo" here and lose!
--You, Jeff, being a neat-freak--should never go down here....
--Cam would just faint dead!

:o)------Gita

3--

OK--on a more serious note---"ahem'....

sINCE WE have been having some deep talks about Amaryllis care,
would there be any interest if I started a Thread on "AMARYLLIS CHAT"???

Today, I spent most of my day re potting all my Amaryllis. This means--taking each
bulb out of the pot it has lived in foe 2 years--cleaning it up, pruning back the
straggly roots, getting rid of some small bulbs that just did not make it--rotted..
Mixing up a huge amount of fresh soil and re-potting each bulb in same, or different
pots. Also--cutting back all the necks.

I documented all this in pictures as I worked today, so I would have plenty to
show you or talk about. Would there be any interest?

If not--I can also show all the pictures right here....but they would get lost in chat
and this Thread moving on when it gets too long.

LMK!

Meanwhile--here is a good picture from today showing a perfectly cut back neck
on an Amaryllis. This is how it should look if you do it.

Before----and after...........G.

Jeff, amaryllises don't mind being pot-bound, but they don't *need* to be pot-bound in order to thrive & bloom well. Repotting in fresh mix every couple of years is a good idea... I like to repot every fall if possible, so I can add a shot of time-release fertilizer, although I've seen people successfully sprinkle fertilizer pellets on top, also. Or you can feed with a water-soluble fertilizer, no more than half-strength, especially if you use it every time you water.

Gita, I have a corner of my basement like that, potting mix on the floor, stacks of old pots, and my light shelves. It's my "greenhouse-equivalent" LOL. You always seem to run out of space on your upstairs light shelves... why not put a couple of shop lights over a shelf in your basement somewhere?

Jill-
There are three 4' shop lights in my shop. The main one, over the work table, is the
only place the lights do any good, as I do use these over my 2 big Clivias.
See pic. above).
The other two lights are further away-and just just light up the rest of the basement.
I DO NOT have a "shelf somewhere" in my basement. All shelves down there
are against the concrete walls and hold all kinds of heavy stuff. Cans of paints, tools,
all kinds of bottles and jars, extra flooring tiles, car washing stuff, etc.
Just stuff that collects with good intentions to use it some day.
Those days seem to never come. ...You DO see that ALL the shelves are full?
If you look again at he photos above--you can see the problem.

I don't know how someone, who has never seen someone else's house and areas,
can suggest doing something like putting up shelves and lighting.
I have never seen your basement--and would not suggest any changes down there.
How would I know? I get really aggravated when I hear these kind of things.
G.

LOL, there's plenty of unsolicited advice to be had in this forum -- and you dish out your share! :-)

Nearly anybody's storage shelves can make room for a pair of shop lights (hung directly above the shelf, so the height can be adjusted to just an inch or two over growing seedlings). Yours is no exception... clear away a box of the "useful someday" items, and voila.

Somebody once posted they'd found space for 2 trays of seedlings by putting a shop light across 2 kitchen chairs, adjusting the height by putting boxes under the trays. That's when I figured out that *anybody* could make space for grow lights!

Of course, your current setup produces more seedlings and cuttings than you have space for in your garden beds, so no worries.

Gita, thanks for all that. What temperature is your shop where you keep the dormant amaryllis?

Do you leave those lights on for the clivia all the time?

Jeff--
My shop is usually around 58* in the winter. Of course--now with all this warm weather--it may be warmer. I just went and looked--it is about 62*-64*.
This 'room" is almost totally underground and there are no heat vents in the Shop.
When I run the dehumidifier there, it does put out a lot of warm air from the vent.

I TRY to remember to leave the shop lights on during the day. Times vary how long.
If I will be gone ALL day--I may not turn them on. Clivias are pretty adaptable and
do fine even if they have to sit in the dark for a couple days.
Last winter--one of them decided to bloom down there.

I have 2 different kinds--both orange, though. One has more pointed leaves,
and the other's are more rounded. The latter has the most intense, orange blooms.
You can see the difference in the leaves in the photo I posted above.
Take a look again. This picture really shows the difference.

Do you have a Clivia? I am thinking to un-pot the one with the rounded leaves and
divide it. it IS starting to push the pot a bit. I may have an extra division for you--
if you want. They are so easy to grow...not much watering needed.
Mine sit outside all summer--in shade --on a East table just in front of my big
burning bushes. These, completely, protect them from any winds and if they do topple,
they just fall against the bushes--no harm.

My Fig is down there too--but I am thinking it may want to be in more light?????
Some of the stems look like they may be dying back. Is that normal?
I have never grown a fig this far. Cuttings--yes. A whole plant in a BIG pot--No!

M Lemongrass and my weird-leafed "Hibiscus". are down there too--both growing
new leaves.

1--is the pointed-leafed Clivia (March--2014)
2--this is the rounded-tip leaf Clivia. The blooms are so much more intense.

Yeah I'd take a division of your Clivia. Paul gave me one at Aspen's swap but I forgot to bring it with me then and just told her she could keep it.

The Christmas cactus you gave me at the swap 9/14 hasn't bloomed yet. It grows new leaves pretty well but has never bloomed. I feed it too. What can be done to get that sucker blooming?

Christmas cactus need a short day/long night to start buds. That's one reason leaving them outside until frost works well (unless lit at night). Does it have jagged, toothed edges? If not, it could be a spring bloomer.

Henbit is growing beautifully in this weather...My reblooming yellow iris has been able to open its buds, but looks a mess with todays rain.

I agree with Sally---
Do you keep your CC in the house all year? That would be the reason it hasn't bloomed.
Mine spend the summer outside, on shelves up against my house under the patio roof.
I leave them out until it gets to about 40's. They really need this nip.
By the time I bring them inside--there are small bloom buds on all the ends.

My Patio has a pole light that is on 24/7.Not close to the CC's, but still--there is dim
light all night. They still bloom.

Right now--the blooming is done and they need 8 weeks of "rest". During this time--water VERY sparingly--if at all. When the 2 months is up--resume normal care
and fertilize. It will now put out new growth and march on.

1--The picture below shows you, sort of, where things are. To the left of the chair are shelves the CC's sit on all summer. Right under thw windows.
If you look behind the trash cans--you can see my 2 Clivias sitting there.
Behind them are the 2 big, old Burning bushes. Nice privacy from neighbors
and a buffer. This side faces East--most winds come fro the west.

2--This is view of the whole patio. See the pole light? (the "moon"). That is on 24/7.
Not close enough to light up the plants against the house.but--yeah--a bit.

3--another view looking at the house and patio from the back lawn.

Merry Christmas to all my Gardening Buds.

Merry Christmas Lisa! Great family photo.

My CC is in the office where we have the lights on from 730-630 all week long with not much deviation. It has the rounded leaves.

I was encouraged today when I went to dump out the soil from my one amaryllis and I saw fresh roots growing within the soil. I think I'm going to take them back home, clean up the bulbs some, and throw them into a new pot. I can trim the necks a bit. It was encouraging to see though.

Lisa, What a great family Merry Christmas

Nice family pic, Lisa

Merry Christmas to you as well and everyone else.

In a return to the discussion of the unseasonal weather and it's impact, Pat and I were driving home from Leesburg yesterday and were surprised to see a roadside bank covered with Gelsemium rankinii - Carolina Jessamine - in full bloom. Wonder what it will do in the spring?