If you haven’t experienced the joy of giant red blooms just in time for Christmas, then you clearly aren’t part of the amaryllis club. Forcing bulbs to bloom in the middle of winter is a wonderful way to add a touch of nature to your holiday décor and make winter a little more bearable. And it’s so easy to do; you don’t need to have a green thumb.
Forcing Amaryllis Bulbs to Bloom for Christmas
For years, I would walk past the boxes of amaryllis bulbs that show up in stores each October. I was too intimidated, thinking only serious gardeners or some kind of wizard could get something so big and beautiful to grow in the middle of the winter.
But one year, I decided to give it a try. I was hooked!
I’ll let you in on a little secret: it’s so easy that you could buy the box, bring it home and do nothing, and that bulb would still put out a bud or two inside the box. Grab one, and let’s get started.
Which Bulb to Buy
All of the bulbs that appear in the stores in October and November have been grown so that they will bloom in the winter. Amaryllis takes 6-8 weeks to bloom. Plant your bulbs in early to mid-October for holiday blossoms.
There’s nothing special you have to do. But some bulbs will do better than others. Skip the ones coated in wax. They’re always quite popular, but because the bulb can’t breathe, it’s more prone to rotting. You definitely won’t get blooms that way.
If the bulb is in a box and you can open it without damaging the packaging, do so. You want one with a little bit of the leaves starting to peek out of the bulb. Don’t worry if they’re pale green; they will perk up. Even if you can’t see the bulb until you get it home, if you’re buying it in October or November, it will likely be fine.
What You’ll Need
Most boxed bulbs already have everything you need in the box to grow your Amaryllis, but you might want to make some substitutions.
Your bulb will likely come with a flimsy black nursery pot that’s ugly as sin and will look awful with your Christmas decorations. It will also be much too small once the amaryllis reaches full size and will be prone to tipping over. Instead, I recommend using a heavier clay or terracotta pot that’s 6″ to 8″ in diameter. (These ones are beautiful, good and sturdy.)
There’s nothing more heartbreaking than having your top-heavy amaryllis fall over and snap off the flower stem after waiting weeks for it to bloom. Ask me how I know.
You will also likely find a small puck of coconut coir in the box. I love these! They always produce way more coconut coir than you need for your bulb. I save the extra for when I’m mixing up custom potting mix for other plants.
If your bulb doesn’t come with potting media, you’ll need a small amount of all-purpose potting mix.
It’s not necessary, but I like to put a few stones in the bottom of the pot to help make it steadier.
Planting Your Bulb
If you’re using them, place stones in the bottom of your pot so the plant is less likely to tip over once it’s in bloom.
Reconstitute your coconut coir by placing it in a large bowl or small bucket. Slowly pour very warm water over it until it begins to expand. Keep pouring a little more water on it every few minutes until it’s four times the size it started. At this point, you should be able to gently break it apart, mixing in more water if needed. You want it to be quite moist but not soaking wet.
You may be tempted to peel the papery brown skin from the bulb but leave it in place.
Place some coconut coir or potting mix in the bottom of the pot. You want the bulb to have at least 3″ -4″ of potting media below it. Now, set your bulb in. Cover the bulb with more potting mix, leaving the top third of the bulb above the soil. Gently press the potting mix around the bulb.
Water thoroughly, then let your potted bulb drain in the sink.
Watch and Wait
Place your potted bulb somewhere it will receive 6-8 hours of bright, indirect sunlight a day. The water and soil will bring the bulb out of dormancy, and within a week, you’ll notice it starting to grow and green up.
Continue to water your bulb once the top 1″ of soil is dry. Amaryllis bulbs will rot if they sit in too damp soil. Always use a pot with a drainage hole and tip out any water if the pot is sitting on a saucer.
Over the next few weeks, your bulb will grow long, slender leaves and a flower stalk. Buds will form at the top of the stalk. I’ve had anywhere from two to four blossoms on one flower stalk.
If you’ve timed it right, you’ll have gorgeous amaryllis blooms on display for Christmas. If you haven’t, you’ll still have gorgeous blooms sometime during the holidays.
Should You Fertilize?
That all depends. As I said, these bulbs are easy to grow. They don’t need any fertilizer at all to produce blooms this year. The bulb already stored up energy and nutrients from the previous year. However, if you want to keep your bulb to get it to bloom again next year (yes, you can do that), you’ll want to fertilize every couple of weeks with a fertilizer made for blooming plants. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy the show.
Save Your Bulbs for Next Year
You can save your amaryllis bulbs, and they will bloom again next year. The process is quite simple. Once all the buds have opened and your amaryllis has finished blooming, cut the flower stalk close to the base near the bulb. Don’t cut the leaves!
Keep watering the bulb when it dries out and feed it with a fertilizer made for blooming flowers. Bone meal is great for bulbs. In the spring, once the nights stay consistently above 55 degrees F., move your amaryllis bulb outside. The leaves will continue to absorb light and store energy in the bulb.
In late July or early August, stop watering the bulb. If you have to, move it under cover where it won’t receive rain. Let the leaves die off and trim them away when they’re brown and papery. Remove the bulb from the container, brush off the dirt and trim the roots back. Keep it in a dark, dry place until October rolls around again. Then, start the whole process over.
Fun Tip:
I like to wait until after Christmas to buy up amaryllis bulbs that didn’t sell. They’re half off at that point. If you can, open the box to be sure they haven’t already tried to bloom in the box. Often, they will push out a bud even in the dark box.
Plant your budget bulbs right away, and you’ll have another round of cheery blooms sometime in February. I can’t tell you how uplifting it is to have huge, colorful blossoms indoors right when it feels like winter is never going to end.
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