Anyone Know If Its Time To Bring In Amarylis Yet?

[TransplantShock]

I know they are supposed to have some kind of dry dark period before winter, is the time to bring them in now?

[decompost]

gosh, i always just let the cold kill back the foliage on mine -_-
then i stick 'em in the basement stairwell 'til they start to grow again.

[MrSeedy]

You can induce a short "dormant" period in container ones now just by allowing them to dry completely out, and then the leaves will yellow and die back. Then when they're ready to bloom they'll start sending up new growth, at which time you can gradually increase their watering til they're watered on a regular basis.
Generally for Chistmas blooms they need a couple of months of dormancy minimum, so if you want bloom then , they should go dormant now. I must say though it always seemed to me that they'd decide when they wanted to bloom again, so perhaps if you were to start watering again 4-6 weeks before Christmas they might respond and flower as planned for the holliday. You do have to watch the watering though if they're in a cool place, as too much water can rot the bulbs if they're not actively growing.

[Rich]

I stopped watering mine mid-August. The leaves are just starting to yellow.

When they die down completely I'll leave it for a few weeks then repot them and start again.

I never put them outdoors, but may do so next year as an experiment.

[MrSeedy]

The disadvantage to having them outdoors is that you can't control the amount of water , should you get lots of rain, or unless they're under a coverd porch or something similar , so you can allow them to dry out. It seems though , mine wouldn't bloom til February, but I always waited for the shoots to start comming up before I'd start watering again. I just left mine in the same pot for years, and didn't bother repotting them often to refresh the soil, and I think they do fine potbound until new "pups" make the pots too crowded!!

[Audwoman]

I think everyone has heard my rant on the dry dormant thing. :lol: I refuse to dry my bulbs out with no water in the dark or a paperbag.

I grow mine like houseplants. They go outside in the pots every summer with a dash of bulb booster. They are in fast drainng soil if it rains alot they suck it up They are in full sun. If it does not rain I water and give them some liquid fert. When it starts to get cool I bring them in and water about every two weeks. I let them flower when they are ready, usually in Feb when I am ready to bounce off the wall from flower withdrawal.

Appleblossom has bloomed some years in the winter and summer with this treatment and I now have three bulbs of that one. :D