Amaryllis

Where it grows

The wild ancestors of the florist’s amaryllis are species of Hippeastrum, native to humid forests from northern Argentina to Brazil and the Caribbean. The bulbs are produced commercially in the Netherlands, South Africa, Israel, and Peru, with growers in tropical countries supplying off-season bulbs.

How to recognise it

A single fleshy bulb sends up a hollow, leafless flower stalk thirty to sixty centimetres tall before any leaves appear. Two to six huge trumpet flowers, each ten to twenty centimetres across, open from the top. Long strap-like leaves emerge afterwards, photosynthesising to feed the bulb for next year.

Garden & cultural uses

Amaryllis bulbs are sold worldwide as Christmas gifts because they bloom reliably six to eight weeks after potting, perfect for winter cheer. After flowering the leaves should be allowed to mature; bulbs can be coaxed to rebloom the following winter with a dry summer rest.

In naming

The true Amaryllis is a separate African genus with a single species; nineteenth-century botanists muddled the names, and the South American plant kept the wrong label in the trade. Botanists now call it Hippeastrum, but the older name is too well established to dislodge.