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sunrisefairy

cold hardiness???

sunrisefairy
18 years ago

HI ,

I live in West Central Texas and have fond memories of my grandmothers amaryllis she grew in the Florida panhandle. She had a little round bed and never dug hers up as far as i can remember. Now we generally have mild winters here with the occassional front blows thru that can dip us down to 20 degrees for a short time. And the running joke is the next day can be 80 degrees. lol My question is can i leave my amaryllis outside all winter? Should i mulch them? How deep do plant them???Any varieties cold hardier than others?? thanks for any help

Comments (6)

  • tokyomafia
    18 years ago

    There are some varieties H. Johnsonii (St. Joseph's Lily) that are known to survive in Texas heat and cold which are the first American hybrids dating back to late 1700's. I bought some bulbs from an eBay seller in Roopville, Georgia (Zone 7) that was thinning out his mother's garden bed. He didn't know what they were but I've identified them as H. Johnsonii and H. Punecium. They look more hardy and vigorous than my typical dutch bulbs. The flower is smaller and thinner but has it's own beauty. From what I can determine, the entire bulb appeared to have been burried.

  • manfredk
    18 years ago

    by some resources on the internet the johnsonii is said to survive in zone 5.

    I bought some from southern italy which survived there in the open all year long.

    but I am a little afraid to test it in my area.

    best regards
    manfred

  • soultan
    16 years ago

    Not as an advice just as an observation:
    I live in Southern California, Los Angeles. I see amaryllis planted out year round in the ground that come back following year without any problems and bloom by the end of Spring naturally. They are usually huge flowering hybrid-looking flowers. I would say I saw some Benficas out there for instance. Two years ago we had a huge freeze down. It did not last long, but there was like $12 billion damage in the citrus industry that year just from that few days of frost. The forementioned amaryllis bulbs have come back as if nothing happened during the winter. So I assume that they can survive a short period of frost if they are protected by soil or something.

  • Noni Morrison
    16 years ago

    The frosty air will probably not bother the bulbs as long as the ground does not freeze. IF it freezes one night then is 89 degrees the next day, the ground will act as an insulating blanket. Here I Can leave dahlias and gladioli in the ground over the winter, and most of them survive and are quite healthy the next year...but every so often we do get a spell cold enough to freeze the ground deeply. IT has not happened to me since I started growing dahlias, but I am always aware of the risk I take, and know that I would have to start over. Another factor is how wet the ground stays... Here my amaryllis bulbs might survive the temperatures but winters are very wet, and the bulbs would likely rot.

  • jodik_gw
    16 years ago

    The only Amaryllis that will truly survive a frigid winter with frozen ground is the only true Amaryllis, Lycoris Squamigera, commonly known as "Naked Ladies". In fact, I planted a dozen bulbs last fall, and they're already poking up out of the ground about an inch or two!

    Hippeastrum, commonly called Amaryllis, are tender bulbs... and I doubt any variety would survive north of zone 7. Even in zone 7, I believe they need to be planted fairly deep and mulched well for winter.

    I have read a few reports of some bulbs surviving zone 6 winters, but without details on exactly where and how they were planted and cared for, and how long they survived in their location, I don't put much stock in those reports. I would never leave any Hippeastrum bulbs planted outdoors over winter north of zone 7, and even then I would take special precautions.

  • lily55rjw
    11 years ago

    December 2010 I bought some amaryllis bulbs, Appleblossom and Red Lion. In the summer of 2011 (last summer) I planted the bulbs outside 4 inches away from the house on the east side and placed the bulbs in the ground so there was 4 inches of soil from the top of the bulb to ground level. In the fall, I placed 2 feet of fallen leaves on top and they are just now (July 26, 2012) starting to sprout. I am in zone 5b (Northern, MI).

    I know the post is old but thought for future reference!

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