My Amaryllis bulb (Red Lion) sprouted a tip of a leaf or stalk two weeks ago and stopped growing. Any ideas how to make it grow? The growth is green, just not getting bigger.
Alina from Hoffman Estates, IL
Answer:
Alina,
As long as you're satisfying all of its requirements for growth, I wouldn't worry too much, just make sure it's getting enough sun, keep the compost moist (not wet) and make sure the temperature of the room it's growing in falls in the mid-60's to mid-70's ranges. They are tropical bulbs, so they like moist soil, warm temps and plenty of light. At this stage in the plant's growth, you should also give it a _ strength liquid plant fertilizer every 2 to 4 weeks. The key to growing Amaryllis is really about temperature and light. Plants kept in warmer rooms grow faster and once you see new growth appear, they need a lot of sunlight (direct is okay) or they tend to get tall and floppy. As soon as the flowers start to open, move the plant out of direct sunlight and place it in a cooler part of the room. This will help the flowers last longer. As the blooms start to fade, snip off the flowers to keep the plant from expending energy for seed.
Ellen
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Fertilize it weekly, when in a bulb state and just starting to grow in likes to be fertialized.
You can also force blooming anytime of the year by cutting all the green off of it and fertalizing it, that is the signal to grow.
You will find over time that you will get bulbs growing around the mother plant. this is good, you can gently peel them away and start a new plant.
Also if you leave the flowers to die naturally you will find that after all the bloom is gone you have a new growth on the stalk that looks almost like a green pepper. This is a seed pod and another way to propagate your plant.
Mine bloom 3 times a year. and now it is not hard on the plant if you water them and fertalize them properly.
Thank you so much. Yes, I bought it this season with another bulb (Apple Blossom), planted them both at the same time and the Apple Blossom is already blooming. I did pull some scales off and moved it on the window sill. It may be my imagination, but it seems to have grown a little bigger, so there's hope. Thank you very much again!
Is this the first season you have grown it? I would move it to a sunnier location, and if there is a lot of dead (onion skin like) material around the bulb, pull some of that off. Also give it a little more water.
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