Since Eduard Poeppig
plucked the first amaryllis from the ground in 1828 in Chile,
a lot has happened. That first amaryllis was probably ghostly
pale compared to the red, white, and pink trumpets that have become
commonplace houseplants, especially around the holidays. Even
so, the plantsman was so thrilled that it is said he was "often
compelled to relieve his full heart by uttering loud shouts of
joy, to which his faithful dog and sole companion and witness
of his delight responded with howls of equal delight."
Fast forward to 2002.
You can imagine his elation if he saw today’s amaryllis after
more than 200 years of hybridizing: botanists tinkering with the
shape and size of blooms and petals, height, and fragrance.
The result? Amaryllis
colors have exploded, now covering the color spectrum — velvety
reds, oranges, salmons, mahogany, magenta, deep rose, Victorian
pinks, white, creamy yellow, lemon-lime. There are so many colors
that they’ve run out of names for them. A pure yellow seems to
be the last hurdle in the color barrier. Colors are also combined,
creating a bi-color flower such as ‘Wedding Dance", which is white
with a green throat. Patterns have been created, using flecks,
streaks, stripes, spots, and venation.
Bloom shape, size,
angle, number and longevity have also been tweaked. Flower faces
graduated from the simple trumpet to rounded, triangular, rectangular,
either open and flat or closed. Petals can reflex back for that
wind-swept look or project forward, creating a hood. The shape
of the petal can be broad, rounded, or narrow and pointed, spidery,
or undulating or with a frilly-edge that resembles a lily. Six
petals used to be the norm. Double flowers with 12 petals have
become ordinary and triples — 18 petals — are increasingly available.
Hybrids have upped the ante from two blooms per stalk to four
to six blooms.
Overall size hasn’t
been overlooked. There are a handful of miniatures — single and
double — available that boast clusters of small flowers on
12-inch stems. A good example is ‘Scarlet Baby’. Another variation
is the dwarf varieties, which have shorter scapes (flower stems)
but full, or nearly full, sized flowers.
Most amaryllis are
not fragrant but hybridizers are rolling out a few with some scent.
Those reported to be fragrant include Appleblossom (white and
pink), Blossom Peacock (red with white bands), Minera (red petals
and white stripes), and Jewel (white with creped petals, daffodil-like).
Jewel’s fragrance is described as the aroma of citrus.
Another possible characteristic
is year-round flowering, according to Charles Hardman. In an article
entitled "Trends
in Modern Hippeastrum Hybridizing" in Herbertia (the
publication of the International Bulb Society), he recounted the
story of an hybridizer who discarded an everblooming cultivar
because he thought the feature undesirable.
Hardman also points
out that there is an increasing desire to grow the species (native
South America plans) and to rescue older cultivars from oblivion
and to grow and propagate them for future generations. Work with
species is difficult as the plants are seriously depleted in South
America.
Nurseries like Old
House Gardens (www.oldhousegardens.com)
are dedicated to saving heirloom bulbs. For instance, Hippeastrum
x Johnsonii is one of the oldest hybrids and one of the hardiest
for garden culture. Large clumps of various hardy hybrids can
be seen throughout the southeast. These plants are usually only
available as pass-along plants from neighbors and friends but
a few nurseries are starting to sell them.
Another authority on
the transformation of the amaryllis is Veronica Read. As curator
of the British National Amaryllis Collection, she oversees some
700 plants including more than 140 different cultivars and 34
species. Her web site (www.veronicareadhippeastrum.com)
provides a wealth of information about breeders, cultivars, shows,
and other fascinating background on amaryllis. In fact, her passion
was caught on film recently. A
documentary filmmaker recorded her describing amaryllis at
her London flat surrounded by, you guessed it, amaryllis.
You might ask, why
lavish all this attention on a flower bulb? The plant delivers
a splash of color during the bleakest of seasons and does it effortlessly.
Little or no skill is required to coax the bulb to produce huge,
colorful flowers during winter or early spring. A bloom can last
a week or longer and even makes a great cut flower in a vase.
And unlike other forced bulbs, forced amaryllis can be brought
back to bloom with little effort for years and years. Who could
ask for more?
This miracle happens
in a few weeks, which makes it all the more exhilarating. The
process has been documented beautifully by award-winning photographer
Starr Ockenga in her recent book Amaryllis (Clarkson Potter, 2002,
$20).
A bit of name confusion
haunts amaryllis. The plant commonly known as amaryllis is actually
Hippeastrum hybrids that have evolved from the handful of species
found in South America. It is frequently confused with the true
amaryllis, Belladonna Lily (Amaryllis belladonna), a summer
bulb that grows in masses in southern California. Despite the
fact that the scientific record was set straight in 1837, Hippeastrum
hybrids continue to be referred to as amaryllis.
Amaryllis bulbs come
from Holland, Israel, South Africa, South America, Japan, and
Australia. In some places, like Holland, they’re grown in greenhouses,
but in more temperate climes like Africa and Australia, they’re
grown out in the field. Regardless of their origin, they have
to endure the trauma of early harvest, root deprivation, months
of dry, cold storage, special early-bloom treatment, and still
flourish for the consumer.
You can buy amaryllis
as bare bulbs or prepotted and gift-boxed. This time of year,
gift boxes are stacked by the thousands in Home Depot and Wal-Mart.
On-line vendors are noted below. When shopping look for fresh
bulbs that are referred to by a name rather than just a color.
They’re likely to be better quality. Bulbs that have started to
grow aren’t fresh. The bigger the bulb the better. Bigger bulbs
produce more flowers. Detailed information about growing and reblooming
amaryllis is readily available on-line. See Resources, below.
Sources for buying
bulbs:
http://www.oldhousegardens.com
(rare, heirloom bulbs)
www.smithandhawken.com
www.whiteflowerfarm.com
www.vandycks.com
www.vanengelen.com
www.plantdelights.com
www.johnscheepers.com
Resources:
http://www.veronicareadhippeastrum.com
Netherlands Flower Bulb Information
http://www.bulb.com/aboutspring/rebloom.asp
Netherlands Flower Bulb Information
http://www.bulb.com/springguide98/amaryllis.asp
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International Bulb
Society
http://www.bulb.org
http://www.bulbsociety.org
