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aveo5

How To Plant Amaryllis Seeds

aveo5
12 years ago

Sorry if this question has been asked many times before,but I dont see the answer I need. I have a huge amount of seeds, from my 'Limona' Amaryllis. I crossed it with itself and i have 4 huge pods of seeds, and one ripened and popped open and I took all the seeds out, and have saved them. A week ago. I have NEVER tried to plant amaryllis seeds. So this is new to me.

Are they 'ripe' or viable,when the pod pops open,and you get a ton of papery thin 'seeds'? That have a very small bump towards the bottom of the part that was attached to the pod,but the rest is like tissue paper that is black/brown? Is that amaryllis seed? I am totally ignorant about it. For all i know, these are not ripe, and they have no viable embryo in them.

IF I have ripe seeds, how do I plant them to see if I am going to get any seedlings. I saw 1 posting about floating seeds in water,to make them sprout, something like that. but is that the way to make them sprout? Do I plant them like regular seeds in soil, or vermiculite, or do I cut off all that 'paper' that is all around the tiny bump in the 'seed'. and just save the tiny bump part, and plant that, or what?

I am totally lost. I want to give it a try. I have a Papilio that is making a pod now,and it might also give me seeds in a few weeks, a pod is forming. I did purposely did fertilize them on my own,and it worked! I got 4 pods on the Limona, and one on the Papilio,out of 3 flowers. But I have never seen the seeds before, so I am lost.

How do I plant these Limona seeds,and when the Papilio ripens, will they be the same,all papery with a tiny bump in one section? Do i have a limited time to plant them? Do they go 'bad' fast? These that I have are a week out of the pod, and I have 3 more pods about to ripen,maybe in less than a week. So how do i try to get baby Limonas? and then Papilios?

Comments (11)

  • kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
    12 years ago

    I have planted seeds 1 year later and some still germinated. Check the FAQ (but do not reply to it) for questions about sowing seeds or do a search for "sowing" "floating" or germination to get more information. Everyone uses a slightly different methods.

    BTW...if you have Limona x Limona, you can't call those Limona...they are Limona selfs (same with Papilio) as they will exhibit a variety of characteristics from the parents, grandparents, etc....all the amaryllis that went into the making of Limona can come out in the selfs!
    K

  • aveo5
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Well I looked up some of the germination tips, and everyone talks about this water floating technique. do i just place these seeds on the top of some water and wait for a root to sprout and then what? are these ripe, these papery flat 'seeds' that I have? How long does it take to get roots? Or do I wait for some kind of top growth to happen? And then plant them into soil or vermiculite? Or some kind of special mix? These will sprout just floating on water?

  • Carol love_the_yard (Zone 9A Jacksonville, FL)
    12 years ago

    Aveo, the water flotation method is popular among those in the cooler zones and it is a tried and true method in those areas. You will see it frequently on this forum because amaryllis/hippeastrum are so popular with folks in zones 5, 6, 8 and 8 and the flotation method works well for them.

    However, for those of us in warm climates, it makes much more sense and I have had far more success starting them directly in soil. You lose fewer seedlings and don't have the additional step of transplanting them from water to soil. And they start out with healthier roots. I am convinced that this is the way to go in Zones 9 and higher (warmer).

    See link below for details.

    Have fun and good luck!
    Carol

    Here is a link that might be useful: Seed Germination

  • Carl
    12 years ago

    "Are they 'ripe' or viable,when the pod pops open,and you get a ton of papery thin 'seeds'? That have a very small bump towards the bottom of the part that was attached to the pod,but the rest is like tissue paper that is black/brown? Is that amaryllis seed?"

    Yes! Hippeastrum disperse their seeds via wind. The embryo itself is rather small compared to the "wing", but you should feel it in the middle of the wing, not at the bottom as you describe it.

  • aveo5
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I dont know how to describe it correctly,...it is near the middle of this paper 'wing'.

  • Carl
    12 years ago

    Check out the link at the bottom, there's also a picture of ripe seeds.

    "If you place an Amaryllis seed between your thumb and index finger you'll be able to tell which are the viable Amaryllis seeds because there will be a pronounced "bump" in the middle of the otherwise flat seed."

    Here is a link that might be useful: viable Amaryllis seeds

  • Marie Tran
    12 years ago

    Thank you for all the answers, I am too looking for the answer about amaryllis seeds also. To germinate because my seed pod are getting ready.
    marie

  • aveo5
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    I dont know if my seeds are viable or not. All I can feel in the seed is a TINY bump in about the middle. Not a big bump. but like a big grain of sand. Is that viable, or just unfertilized seeds/ Even though the seed pod grow and split open and all these black flat seeds came out, and they all feel like they have a big grain of sand in them,but it is far from a fat bump. So...is this viable seeds,or just a waste of time?

  • riograndegal
    12 years ago

    Hi all, I just thought I would let ya'll know how I sow my amaryllis seed with great success. I know we all have differant ways of doing things, but what works for others, may not work for you. A few years ago an elderly friend gave me quite a bit of amaryllis seed and I tried differant ways of planting it without success. One day she asked me if I planted the seed and did I have success, I told her I had without success and asked her what had I done wrong. Well I still had quite a bit of seed left 3 years later, so I planted it exactly the way she told me.
    1. Fill a tray with seed starting soil and moisten well but not wet.
    2. Cast your seed over the dirt and cover with one layer of paper towels.
    3. Use a spray bottle to keep the paper towel moist when it goes dry. Check often. in about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks you will get grassy like growth through the paper.

    Don't worry about the paper, it won't harm the seedlings. I grow many amaryllis this way and give to friends and family and well that is the only thing growing in my garden at the moment aside from easter lilies. I do admit I don't cross pollinate, I go for the surprise. Josie

  • aveo5
    Original Author
    12 years ago

    Well I need to know if these seeds are even viable. As i described, the 'bump' in the black papery wing/seed is the size of a big grain of sand. It is NOT a fat plump seed. It is totally flat, with a tiny bump towards the base, about the size of a big grain of sand. I have been 'floating' like 20 seeds now for 3 weeks, and nothing is happening. SO...do they have to be fat plump seeds, with big plump bumps in them, or is this tiny grain of 'sand' a viable embryo?

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