Can Amaryllis be planted outside and bulbs taken up in fall?

I have two amaryllis plants, quality, Wal-mart ones, lol, but I was wondering if in the spring, I can plant them outside and then dig up the bulbs, corms, or whatever in the fall, similar to cannas. Also,
will they flower in the spring or summer? I live in zone 5a. They are growing very quickly and I cannot wait until they flower!! I normally have no luck with indoor plants.

Hi dlsrzbb, I have tried planting amaryllis outside in the spring here and have had no luck with them growing. However, I have heard that it is possible and yes, you would dig up the bulb again in fall as you would cannas. In your zone try planting the bulb just below the surface after the foliage dies down in late spring, sun or shade.

TC...

I wouldn't plant them too deep. Also, mine never go (or are allowed to go) dormant. They bloom multiple times a year. Some are even walmart bulbs!! You could move the pots outside instead of planting in the ground and then digging them back up.

Thank you guys for the info. Geuss I have a ways to wait for spring anyway. Just can't wait to see them bloom. Never have done them before.

You're welcome dbb, they're beautiful and you'll love them.

TC...

After blooming put in a moderatley sunny window, keep watering and fertilizing. You want to continue to get lots of leaves (nice for winter anyway) which is needed for the bulb to grow and gather enough energy for the next bloom cycle.

caron, how interesting that you ignore the advice of the "experts" and do not have your bulbs go dormant. I have often considered that because it really takes a long time to get them to die down and restart, and it seems like they are missing a lot of opportunity to create and store food for blooming. You may have just persuaded me to keep mine going year-round!
My mom used to have a peach colored one (actually a whole bunch of bulbs crowded together in an old milk can) and it would bloom at Thanksgiving after spending the whole summer outside on the porch. It never went dormant, although the lighting was quite reduced in the winter. But it never bloomed twice a year. Do you give yours a lot of light all year? Fertilize all year? Any further info would be appreciated. Too bad mine are now dormant!!!
Also, I have a friend who planted a walmart amaryllis outside, in front of a concrete retaining wall here in zone 6. It has survived 2 winters, bloomed both springs, and has multiplied! So far, I have not wanted to risk losing mine.

Mine have been living in a south window that's pretty shaded by tall pine trees for 7 years now. Bright light all the time and sun for a few hours mid to late morning. They all bloom about 4x a year for me. Really potbound and do not produce many babies (think all the energy is going into leaves and blooming instead). I fertilize full strength with a 10-15-10 each time I water. Now using ST too. Let the soil dry a bit between waterings. These have been repotted once in the 7 years (3 years ago was the last time I bothered).
This whole thing started because I am just way too lazy to bother forcing them to go dormant, storing, getting them out again, etc....Decided to see what would happen if I just kept them as I do my regular houseplants. Indoor conditions are artificial anyway so what the heck. You know, the blooms are an added bonus as far as I'm concerned-just having the foliage year round is awesome!! I'll try to post some pictures later today.
As long as you give them sun and water the bulbs will continue to grow and subsequently flower.

That sounds great...I am going to do that next winter instead of storing them. I would have worried that year round regular fertilizer would discourage blooms, so your info is like a goldmine.
What is ST? I am sure it something easy, but nothing comes to mind right now.

By the way, I have been to Woodland Park several times on my way to Mueller State Park. We stumbled onto Mueller in 1996 by accident and got a campsite that had not even been used before...brand new firering there that was made about 60 miles from our home here in Missouri. Small world sometimes. We love Colorado! Lucky you for living in that gorgeous area.

sorry, ST=SuperThrive.

WOW that's the first time any has ever said that they know where I live!! Have you been here recently? Boy has it changed! We are behind the new Safeway as you come into town. You passed within 2 blocks of my house on your way to Mueller. We are in a little section that has not been annexed to the city. 1 acre and a good well...Watch ot tho, Walmart is on the way in just up the block. So much for that small town feel....

Go ahead and keep them growing all winter. You're not gonna kill them (if I can't no one can), lol!!

here ya go....

I have a similar question but from somewhat the opposite end of the scale. I have a hard time with bulbs here because it gets to hot rather than too cold and I am always looking for bulbs that I don't need to lift in the fall in order to artificially chill them (can't afford to turn my refrigerator over to bulbs all winter). I have an amaryllis in the house right now that is just starting to bloom and after this bloom cycle I would like to try it in ground outside. But I'm not sure when would be the best time to put it in ground and when to expect it to next rebloom. This is somewhat of an experiment that I am doing and if I can determine those 2 things I would like to have many more of them in ground (more than I could keep potted in the house).

Gee, caron, things have changed! The last time we were there, I think they only had City Market for groceries. We have been to Estes Park and Grand Lake the last few trips. My daughter, a teacher, wants to move out there to Colorado Springs and camped at Mueller last summer. Her boyfriend is a defense contractor and thinks he can transfer out there. Now, if they could just pay off their credit cards, student loans, cars, etc...they could have the money to move, ha.
I bet the land values have really gone up lately, too!

Pville Planter,
I am pretty sure you can plant your amaryllis in the ground whenever the chance of a frost is over (March?). I would not plant it out now because the foliage would get killed and you would not get any food storage or flower bud for next year. But I do not know when they normally bloom there in Texas. Maybe you could post a thread in the bulbs forum asking about amaryllis in the south. Good luck!

Thanks Toxic. I had done that a while back and it does seem as though when planted in ground in my area they are spring bloomers but no one had any experience with setting them out after they had had an initial forced bloom inside out of the natural bloom cycle. They are not generally available here except as houseplants during the late fall and Christmas season and even then I haven't found any that were virgin bulbs so to speak. They are already sprouting and developing roots when you buy them so I didn't know if cutting the roots and sprouts now and planting them in ground (we generally don't get a hard frost until December or January) would work either. In hindsight I probably should have gotten 5-6 at the same time and tried each combination of possibilities in order to compared which was most sucessful..

Yes, but still resonable compared to other bigger cities. Probably way more expensive than where you are!!
Teachers are always needed here and defense contracting has really taken off again. Fort Carson expanision plans are pretty huge for the next 10-15 years or so....

Thanks, caron, for the additional info about the area. If my daughter does move out there, maybe she can contact you for info about easy to grow plants, LOL. She loves the idea of not mowing...just wildflowers. I don't think she realizes how arid it is, though.

P'ville...
I still think you should let the new bulbs grow and flower inside for now, and keep the foliage growing until past frost in the spring. Then set them out in the landscape and keep them growing all summer. Maybe you will be surprised with another bloom next fall! If not, then they should start blooming the next spring. I would not want to cut off any shoots...usually the flower bud is one of the first shoots to emerge.
You might email htop in San Antonio....she is a plant buddy of mine and knows a lot about gardening in Texas. I am sure she would try to give you an answer.

Thanks again for even more info and Caron, your plants are beautiful. Right now, mine are just one stem coming up with a bloom on it. Will the greenery come after the bloom?

I think that is what I will do with this one Toxic but I don't know about keeping it growing during the summer. I think I may also have to plant the bulb deeper rather than let the top stay exposed. I think 100 degree heat would probaly fry it otherwise.

I have about 20 or so amaryllis bulbs, some several years old, some from last season. i do pretty much what caron says,, to some extent keept them growing all the time. I don't take them out of their pots when i put them outside after danger of frost is over, in a semi-shaded area. i do try to remember to fertilize them but know they probably need more. About a month ago all were lifted from ground and put under table in my bonsai storage area, temp. 35 to 50 degrees. Brought 5 into the house, ones that the foliage had mostly died down. Put on highest shelf in my plant room where it is warmest. Will not water them until I see new growth. Some of them flower during the summer hiatus outside. And they do bloom most of them sporadically during the winter months. Donna

Donna,
I have had a few before that were given to me as already blooming plants but this is the first time I have grown one from a bare bulb. I planted this bulb 2 weeks ago and it is already blooming! But so far it doesn't look like the ones I've received when there were already in full bloom. Is this the way they are suppose to look with they first start to bloom?

Yes dlsrzbb, the foiliage will start to pop up after the blooms fade.