ATTENTION WINTER FLOWER GARDENERS!

In my working years, I always had a group of African violets in the window. They didn’t need much of anything but water, and they were there to cheer me up on dreary winter days. They even did double duty as table decorations if someone came to dinner. That all changed when we retired. Going South for two or three months in the winter wasn’t conducive to indoor gardening. But there comes a time when you can’t make that long trip back and forth every year. The good news is that you can have indoor plants again. Attention winter flower gardeners! Now is the time to pot your amaryllis bulbs.

When the pandemic came along in the winter of 2020, the plants that kept me going were the amaryllis I’d saved from last year. They aren’t like any other indoor plant.. They’re magical and mysterious, and only bloom for a short time. But when they blossom on a freezing day in February, they will lift your spirits like no other. Because they’re gorgeous.

Attention, winter flower gardeners! Time to pot your amaryllis bulbs. — Attention winter flower gardeners! Now is the time to start your amaryllis bulbs to bloom during the holidays.

This is the month for amaryllis lovers to get busy. Right now, I have ten bulbs stored in the basement from last year’s crop. There’s plenty of potting soil in the garage, but I must think about pots. I have lots of those little plastic flower pots, but a few of them are black. Ugh. That’s not very decorative. Took them out on the deck and sprayed them with some bright green paint left from last spring. Now is the time to plant.

Attention winter indoor gardeners — Attention winter flower gardeners ! Moisten the soil, fill the pot a little more than half full and set the bulb on top. Add more soil, leaving the top 1/3 of the bulb exposed.

You want some amaryllis blooming for Christmas, and others to come out all winter until daffodils bloom in the Spring. Here’s the trick. Once you plant the bulbs , you stagger their growth, which won’t happen until the potted bulb is heavily watered, just that first time. And then you wait. It takes 6 to 8 weeks for leaves to emerge before the flowers actually bloom. During that time, it will need very light watering, only once a week.

I’ll start one pot every week beginning in late October. If I’m lucky, four or five will be in bloom during the holidays. Come January, I’ll start one more. Then another in February. . Sometimes, an old bulb will let you down. It may only produce leaves, or not grow at all. That’s part of the mystery.

Toward the middle of December, stores like Menard’s and Wal Mart are selling amaryllis bulbs at half price. So of course, I’ll replenish my supply and rotate their growth during the winter months.

Attention winter flower gardeners! Get those Amaryllis bulbs out of the closet.

November 18, 2020November 18, 2020

HURRY IF YOU LOVE AMARYLLIS

Has anyone ever sent you an Amaryllis plant for Christmas? If they did, you may have gotten hooked. There’s something miraculous about watching the leaves shooting up, inch by inch. After four to six weeks, a fresh bud emerges, and finally, after a few days, bursts into a glorious trumpet-shaped flower. The white, red or pink blossoms lift your spirits and help you through gloomy winter days. If you order the plants online, they’re fairly expensive. But during November and December, you can buy them for under $10 at grocery and home improvement stores. Hurry if you love magical amaryllis. Because by January they’re gone.

Amaryllis plants are sold as kits, complete with pot, bulb and soil. Once watered, they bloom within 6 to 8 weeks. They make wonderful gifts that the recipient can enjoy for weeks, and think of you.

Why would you want several? Because they give you hope on dreary days as you watch them grow, inch by inch. I have scads of the bulbs by now, and I plant them in stages , so that I always have one or two coming up all through the winter, and into early spring. It’s also fun to plant two or three in one pot, which makes a beautiful show when they finally flower.

HURRY IF YOU LOVE AMARYLLIS. rIGHT NOW THEY'RE INEXPENSIVE — Hurry if you love amaryllis. Right now, they’re very inexpensive.

Now, here’s the best part. Once the plant has bloomed, it will flower again next year if you store it correctly. If you think that sounds like too much work, it really isn’t. Here’s what you do:

Snip off the flower after it blooms. After that, the leaves will keep growing in that same pot, When it gets warm you can move the plant outside for a few months. In early fall, cut off the leaves and remove the bulb from the pot, roots and all. Then, wrap the bulbs in newspaper, put them in a brown paper bag, and leave them in a cool dark spot until the following winter. This is called the dormant period, and it’s important. I usually label them as to color and size, so I can plant more than one of the same type in one pot.

Around the middle of November, I start by planting the bulbs in fresh potting soil. You might want to trim the roots. Just plant them heads up, and when you want the process to begin and unfold, soak them with water and give them some bright sunlight during the day. Water lightly once a week. Then watch the magic begin.

Amaryllis started appearing in stores last week. Hurry if you love Amaryllis. These bargains won’t be around for long.

December 11, 2019December 11, 2019

HAVE A BLOOMING HOME THIS WINTER

As you wave goodbye to snowbirds heading south, do you feel a bit down about staying home? Maybe you traveled to warmer climates in your first years after retirement. But those days are over. Health or financial concerns have brought a change of plans. So how to make the best of those gloomy cold days ahead? Have a blooming home this winter.

Start with those Christmas poinsettias you normally throw away after the holidays. Hopefully, you have more than one color. Find a warm sunny spot to group them together. They don’t need much care, but when the leaves start to droop, you know they need water.

Amaryllis & Poinsettas grouped together are beautiful — Amaryllis and Poinsettias will give you a blooming home this winter.

My next favorite are the magical, mysterious amaryllis. They come in glorious color combinations of pink, red, and white. You can buy them in November or December, but by January, it’s too late. They’re sold out. I found three at a big box store before Thanksgiving, and some are already starting to bloom. This year, I have some big bulbs saved from last year.. I’m trying to recycle them. The directions say they’ll probably start blooming in six or eight weeks—which will brighten those cold February days. But just in case my experiment doesn’t work, I’m going to buy a few more bulbs at the grocery store to save until January.

Orchids & Anthurium are beautiful house plants — Anthurium and Orchids are Easy to Maintain

Orchid plants are available most everywhere. Some are spindly or overpriced. I’ve had great luck with the big healthy ones at our local discount store. They require very little care—3 ice cubes a week is what’s recommended. . I changed that to ¼ cup water, plus a little houseplant fertilizer every month or so. Amazingly, the plant was still blooming in September. But when I moved it to another window, it didn’t survive the change in light. This year, I’ll let it stay in the same place and see if it lives longer.

Another beauty is the Anthurium plant. Mostly, they come in red, but I know someone who found a white one. I received mine as a birthday gift in July, but it had been over watered, and some of the leaves turned yellow. I cut down the watering, and it’s still blooming now, in December.

If you have the time and space, you might look into other blooming houseplants like violets, begonias or Christmas cactus.

It’s a real upper to wake up on a cold winter morning and see fresh flowers blooming all over your house. And best of all, no weeding is required!