How to make Amaryllis bulbs flower again.
A mini obsession that started with Brad Pitt.
Did you grow Amaryllis bulbs this winter? Isn’t it just one of the most exciting things about the season? How many flower buds will there be? Will the blooms be the colour on the packet? And don’t you think it’s astonishing that such a magnificent display can sprout from something so small with almost no care or attention? It’s as if they know full well that they are the life and soul of the party, sashaying around the room soaking up all the adoration.
If you grew them in compost (that’s important), then instead of discarding the bulbs like the Christmas morning detritus, you can nurture their little souls to make them all fat and juicy again ready for flowering again. Read on and I’ll tell you how.
My first attempt at trying to make Amaryllis bulbs flower for a second year was back in late December 2020. That’s when I originally wrote this article and since then I have experimented each year with varying success. Today I have re-written it for you to include the passage of time and the things I’ve learned along the way.
I named my 2020 Amaryllis Brad because he was stonkingly good looking to the point that you couldn’t help but stare. He knew it too, the little devil, just when you thought he’d peaked, another bloom would magically appear as if from nowhere. In reality, he was actually a trio of bulbs, the father, son and holy ghost of the Amaryllis world. I should have named him Trinity. We were all in the middle of another wretched lockdown and it felt like the world and I were much in need of a Brad in our lives. He was highly floriferous with a peculiarly long stem and a perfectly snowy white blonde and oversized bloom. I just adored him and couldn’t bear the thought that Mr. Pitt may not rise again in 2021.
Up until Brad, my Amaryllis bulbs had tended to get discarded and forgotten somewhere in the garden as I’d always thought it was too much bother to save them until next Christmas. But, with such a Hollywood cutie, I really wanted to be able to succeed as it seemed such a waste otherwise. After doing much research I set about trying to save him.
To find out how to nurture your Amaryllis bulbs for the festive season this year and see whether Brad made it to Christmas 2021 you’ll need to upgrade to a paid membership. For just £1 a week you can get access to my full archive of over 100 articles, advice, hints and tips for both interior design and gardening, along with as many other dollops of joy as is humanly possible. Come and join us for a great 2025!