Although there is a lot happening outside, there is still excitement indoors. I wait to bring my amaryllis (Hippeastrum) in from the garage until the weather starts to warm, and/or the flower stems start to appear. That way they don't have to suffer from being indoors as they grow their light hungry leaves after bloom. But, the trade-off is that I don't have Christmas blooms. I think it's an okay trade-off.
Amaryllis 'Painted Desert' isn't an official name. The plant is my own hybrid that I created in 2015 from 'Red Lion' and H. papilio. I don't have either of the parents any more. 'Red Lion' dwindled and I gave up on coddling it. Papilio for some reason got smaller and smaller flowers and the green didn't excite me, so I gave up on it, also. But 'Painted Desert' has become an amazing plant. The flowers are not of great form, but the color is unique, and the vigor of the plant just can't be beat. I put a 2 foot ruler next to the plant to show the scale.
The first bulb put out two stems, but one came out all bent. Weird. This plant has been so vigorous that it split the pot.
And I'm not going to complain about the lack of form of the flowers, because en masse, they are still great.
A funny color break on one of the petals. I hope it's not a virus.
Slight lateral compression from the papilio parent.
I love the gradation of color on the buds as they form, which I find very engaging.
The light tips of the petals is unique as far as I know. I don't know of any commercially produced ammaryllis with this characteristic.
I think this would be a great plant in a tropical landscape, where the stiff form of the florist amaryllis looks awkward to my eye.
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