It’s the end of summer? What do I do with my Amaryllis now?
This has been my number one question in the last few weeks.
What do I do with my amaryllis? It has big green leaves and has been sitting outside all summer. How do I make it rebloom?
The process is very simple, and amaryllis are very forgiving.
Here are your step-by-step instructions.
The steps are the same whether your amaryllis is in a pot or planted in the garden.
Gently remove the amaryllis bulb from the pot or soil and wipe off extra soil.
Take sharp, clean scissors, and cut the leaves off your amaryllis bulb.
Gently trim any long roots and remove them from the amaryllis bulb
Let your amaryllis bulb dry in a dark place for 24 hours
After 24 hours, place your amaryllis bulb in a paper sack or something similar
Place the paper sack in a dark, cool space. I use the space under my stairwell. Basements work well for this.
Leave your amaryllis bulb alone for eight to ten weeks. Do not water.
Set a reminder on your calendar to pull your amaryllis back out again, or you might forget.
After eight to ten weeks, remove the amaryllis bulbs from their paper sacks and put them in a pot about two inches wider than the bulb.
Use moist but not wet potting soil.
Place your amaryllis in a bright and warm location.
Do not water unless the soil gets really, really dry.
Wait patiently for your amaryllis bulb to sprout. This can take anywhere from six to twelve weeks.
Once it sprouts, you may start lightly watering it more regularly.
YEAH! You’ve done it! You have restarted the whole process with your amaryllis bulb.
What if I messed up? I put my bulb in the garage already and didn’t let it sit out all summer.
That’s okay! I heard from a few of you that your bulb started blooming in the garage in July and August because you didn’t realize you should let it spend its summers outside.
Your amaryllis will be okay, but it’s going to need to be treated like a newborn baby with its days and nights mixed up. LOL!
If this happens to you
Let your amaryllis grow leaves. Amaryllis need the sunlight and leaves to feed the bulb so it can bloom again.
After it is done blooming, cut off the old blooms and stalks.
Keep it potted up and place it in a sunny window or under a grow light.
This is the hardest part of the process. You need to leave it in the window until next summer.
Water it when the soil is dry and treat it as a regular house plant.
When next summer comes, bring your amaryllis outside and let it enjoy the warm days of summer.
Then you will start the 15 steps listed above.
Extra Credit:
If you have more than one amaryllis bulb, succession planting them is a lot of fun.
Follow the 15 steps above, but instead of planting all your amaryllis bulbs at once, plant them at intervals of three to four weeks apart.
This staggers the bloom time and gives you blooms from December until May.
Collecting new bulbs yearly is a great way to build up your inventory and plant amaryllis in succession.
Just imagine fresh flowers on your table all winter. Yes, Please!
Now, you have everything you need to know to get your amaryllis to bloom again. It’s so fun to see so many people learning the beauty and fun Amaryllis is. Just a word of warning: they are addicting to grow.
Amaryllis bulbs will be available coming soon!! Make sure you are on my email list so you are the first to know when they are available. I already have requests coming in!
Do you have more questions? Please put them in the comments below.