I plant Paperwhites every year. I do not always plant Amaryllis, but this year I decided to go outside of tradition. Some years I have better luck with Paperwhites than I do others. Last year I was very disappointed with the Paperwhite bulbs I planted. It was a very sad showing. But I am forever hopeful, so I planted a new set this year. Take a look at how I went about planting the bulbs this year.
Here is the box the Amaryllis came in. How beautiful it looks on the box. Now let's hope I can achieve the same with a little loving care. I decided to use this square bonsai planter for the Amaryllis.
Here is the amaryllis as I removed it from the box. It was already on its way. I hope this is a sign of a healthy flower.
These Amaryllis bulbs show up in stores this time of year every year and are all packaged the same. They come boxed in these horrid little plastic pots with a freeze dried soil "puck". You are to place the soil "puck" in the plastic pot, add warm water and allow it to expand, then break it apart and place your bulb on top of the reconstituted soil. No. That doesn't work. I believe that was part of the reason for my poor performance of Paperwhites last year. I threw away the pot and the puck and planted the bulb in a high quality potting soil and in a ceramic planter as mentioned above.
Before planting the amaryllis, I poured a little tepid water into a bowl. Not very much. You do not want the water to come up the sides of the bulb. You want just enough to wet the roots.
Then I placed the bulb, root side down, into the bowl of water and left it there for about one hour. This helps to produce a vibrant root system.
After an hour, I removed the bulb from the water bath. You can see that some of the soil from the bottom of the bulb has filtered into the water.
The roots revived, I made a little well in the center of the potting soil, then placed the bulb in the soil. I used a slight twisting movement back and forth a few times to get it firmly seated.
Here we are with the bulb in place. Note: You do not want to "bury" the bulb. You only want the root system in the soil and the bulb to be snugly in place.
Now it is time to water the soil thoroughly, but try not to wet the bulb. I did get it wet - more than I wanted - but you will not do that. The standard for watering amaryllis bulbs grown inside is to let the soil dry completely before watering. Then add only enough water to thoroughly wet the soil. Once per week should do. You do not want to over-water because that will lead to the bulb rotting, and we do not want that.
I added a little moss to the top of the soil. This gives a nice decorative touch. It also helps to maintain moisture in the soil, so you may only need to water every week and a half if you place moss on top of the soil.
For the Paperwhites we follow generally the same rules as with the Amaryllis. The only difference really is that the Paperwhite bulbs are smaller and they come in packages of about 10 bulbs per box.
I used another bonsai planter for the Paperwhites. I used the same professional grade soil and did away with the soil puck. I planted them with the roots in the soil and the bulb sitting atop the soil just as with the Amaryllis and at the end I added the moss. Very beautiful presentation. Use the same watering routine as with the Amaryllis. Once per week without moss; once every week and a half with moss. Water only until the soil is moist, not saturated, to avoid the bulbs rotting.
If I had to choose which I like better, Amaryllis or Paperwhites, I could not make a distinction. I love them both equally. I especially like them all in white. Paperwhites only come in white, but Amaryllis come in a variety of colors. Right now, for me, the only color is white.
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| I had to take this picture "hot dog" style rather than "hamburger" style so I could get the box and the planter together. |
Here is the box the Amaryllis came in. How beautiful it looks on the box. Now let's hope I can achieve the same with a little loving care. I decided to use this square bonsai planter for the Amaryllis.
Here is the amaryllis as I removed it from the box. It was already on its way. I hope this is a sign of a healthy flower.
These Amaryllis bulbs show up in stores this time of year every year and are all packaged the same. They come boxed in these horrid little plastic pots with a freeze dried soil "puck". You are to place the soil "puck" in the plastic pot, add warm water and allow it to expand, then break it apart and place your bulb on top of the reconstituted soil. No. That doesn't work. I believe that was part of the reason for my poor performance of Paperwhites last year. I threw away the pot and the puck and planted the bulb in a high quality potting soil and in a ceramic planter as mentioned above.
Before planting the amaryllis, I poured a little tepid water into a bowl. Not very much. You do not want the water to come up the sides of the bulb. You want just enough to wet the roots.
Then I placed the bulb, root side down, into the bowl of water and left it there for about one hour. This helps to produce a vibrant root system.
After an hour, I removed the bulb from the water bath. You can see that some of the soil from the bottom of the bulb has filtered into the water.
The roots revived, I made a little well in the center of the potting soil, then placed the bulb in the soil. I used a slight twisting movement back and forth a few times to get it firmly seated.
Here we are with the bulb in place. Note: You do not want to "bury" the bulb. You only want the root system in the soil and the bulb to be snugly in place.
Now it is time to water the soil thoroughly, but try not to wet the bulb. I did get it wet - more than I wanted - but you will not do that. The standard for watering amaryllis bulbs grown inside is to let the soil dry completely before watering. Then add only enough water to thoroughly wet the soil. Once per week should do. You do not want to over-water because that will lead to the bulb rotting, and we do not want that.
I added a little moss to the top of the soil. This gives a nice decorative touch. It also helps to maintain moisture in the soil, so you may only need to water every week and a half if you place moss on top of the soil.
For the Paperwhites we follow generally the same rules as with the Amaryllis. The only difference really is that the Paperwhite bulbs are smaller and they come in packages of about 10 bulbs per box.
I used another bonsai planter for the Paperwhites. I used the same professional grade soil and did away with the soil puck. I planted them with the roots in the soil and the bulb sitting atop the soil just as with the Amaryllis and at the end I added the moss. Very beautiful presentation. Use the same watering routine as with the Amaryllis. Once per week without moss; once every week and a half with moss. Water only until the soil is moist, not saturated, to avoid the bulbs rotting.
If I had to choose which I like better, Amaryllis or Paperwhites, I could not make a distinction. I love them both equally. I especially like them all in white. Paperwhites only come in white, but Amaryllis come in a variety of colors. Right now, for me, the only color is white.
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