Wow... It would be nice to know. But I am not sure that they have bulbs blooming now that it is just the shipping time for dry bulbs. I bet, if they have some crops blooming, he got a lot of them for the wedding. They are not always selling the flowers as cut flowers. Sometimes they just let them flower and die back. So I hope he could have gotten a lot of blooms. But what if he is just sick and tired of amaryllis in his private life. :o)

I would love to have hippies for my wedding. a pot full of hippies on each table as a centre piece and a bunch of them in my arms.
Thats if I get married......

Maybe...maybe not. Judging from the way he talks about amaryllis and his responses to our questions, I can see "the passion" in him. He was born in SA together with these beautiful hybrids.

Ahhem...We have a single Aussie amaryllis loving girl here. Calling all bachelors...
You have to be growing at least a pot of amaryllis to be eligible though. A cybister variety would give you a better shot!!!

Not Single!! Just not married! Living in sin ;)

Living in sin is better than getting into nasty divorces after realizing that we didn't live long enough in sin to find out if we should get married or not. :o)

You ladies crack me up :)
My ex-wife was jealous of the time I spent in the garden. She considered each pot of amaryllis a threat. She counted each pot(something like 237, not all amaryllis)as evidence that I was an unfit husband.

Marriage is not a piece of paper stating so... marriage is the commitment two people make to each other in their hearts, and in their minds... however, the paper stating so is worth a nice tax deduction!

We lived together for about 5 years or so before we actually did the deed... since it was a second marriage for each of us, and both of us did the first one in a courthouse situation, we really wanted to have the big wedding that we never got.

I wish I'd have thought of Amaryllis when I was planning our wedding... we did a November wedding with burgundy and white roses, baby's breath and english ivy. I made all the bouquets, and pretty much everything else!

We could always renew our vows, and use Amaryllis as the main flower! That would be awesome!

houstonpat...at least you got to keep your potted amaryllis and plants in the deal. How could someone be jealous of beautiful plants??? Dennis is happy I have something to spend my time on. When we first built our house he thought it was just a waste of time, until the neighbors would stop by and admire my plants and landscape efforts. Then he jumped right in putting in raised hacienda brick beds, trees and helped me plant hedges and blooming trees all around out home. Today he even tells me where I have stuff blooming to make sure I've seen the flowers. He happily keeps the shrubs trimmed and does love his lawn. So we have a happy mix here. I request, he builds and also enjoys plants both inside and outside our home now.

That's really nice, Cindee... that you guys can share a bit of gardening... even if it's only a little bit! I think it's about the same for us... Larry is glad I've got a hobby, and he helps... he just put together my mini-greenhouses, ordered all my new supplies... and I think he's even more interested in the breeding end of things because canine breeding used to be his life! Genetics holds his interest really well!

Dennis on the other hand gets lost in carpentry and into the garage to build things for me. He is so crafted and talented. Currently he is building new dining room furniture-Mission/Craftsman style. I love to just sit and watch him for hours. He is a perfectionist. He has the base of the table finished and just finished sanding and balancing the table top. It seats 4 neatly but will open up to seat 8. He also ordered plans for the chairs, after that it is the buffet, tall boy china closet. He is a master craftsman. He disappears into his carpentry same as I do into my gardening. God he's good!
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Houstonpat...Your ex-wife sounds just like my hubby right now. Maybe I should start counting the hours he spend watching football and the empty beer cans...just in case. LOL!

I hear ya mariava. I used to count my ex's empty rum bottles. Now, although we live half a contintent apart, my ladyfriend is much more interested in gardening. In fact we're headed to the Big Island Friday, with planned excursions to botanical gardens and orchards. Any recommendations?

Well... my husband, Larry, doesn't imbibe anything with alcohol, admits to being horrible at working with wood... but his knowledge of technology is astounding! He always says, "God made me simple, technology made me a god!" You guessed it... he's a hacker/geek! He spends a lot of time sitting in front of his monitor, typing away... he's also a very successful canine breeder, and is very into MMA and Boxing!

Cindee - Dennis IS very talented! That's a gorgeous table! I'm picturing some Mission Style plant stands to match! LOL!

HoustonPat is talented in the garden department! Talk about awesome Staghorn Ferns! And there's the mounted Papillio, and the coco or moss basket with the Hippi... those are so beautiful! HoustonPat helped me out immensely when I was first mounting my baby Staghorns, which are doing fine... growing slow, but doing fine! You're lucky to have found someone who, like you, is interested in gardening!

Ooh! A botanical garden tour! Sounds fun!

Thanks for the kind words jodik. I hope to post plant photos from my Big Island vacation when I get back. I have finally come into the 21st century with a nice digital camera. BTW I gave my brother on Oahu some Papilio bulbs which are doing very well. I always thought they would make a nice cut flower.

Here are 2 pics taken in februari this year.

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and

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I need to find more time to organize my pics and then 'll show you some more. Jaap

Beautiful, Jaap! I really wish I had Papillio pictures to share, but my bulb is still too young to bloom... Maybe next year!

HoustonPat - I think a lot of the Hippis would make nice cut flowers, as part of an arrangement... especially some of the Cybisters... I can picture a very simple vase, a couple of Papillio buds and maybe something tall and narrow, like some sort of reddish ornamental grass... or perhaps a contrasting leaf shape, such as a few pieces of needlepoint English Ivy, one piece twining up a bud stem or something... or perhaps a pale yellow flower to pick up the color of the pollen of the Papillio... or maroon/burgundy button mums with Papillio buds... the possibilities are endless!

Another of my crafty talents is flower arranging... if I come across my wedding photos, I'll post one of the bouquets I made. They are packed away in a box somewhere...

jaapm-Beautiful photos, so dramatic!

I'll surely miss my Papilio. It has given me so much joy these past 2 years every time it blooms. Inspite of it being sick (crown drying out), it is showing a tiny tip of a scape, still wanting to flower for me. It could be it's last bloom.

Houstonpat...Hope you have a wonderful time with your cherished partner. Sorry, I have never been to the Big Island. It would surely make me miss my former home.
By the way, can you give me some advice on my var. reticulatum? I have recently purchased 3 pots of them and all of them are losing (drying) 1 of their 2 leaves. Their roots and bulb are fine. Is it their resting period? If so what do I do with them at this point? I have posted in another thread about this asking bluebonsai. He hasn't been here in a while and I'm scared i'd lose my var. reticulatums.

Hey Jaapm...Nice pics!!! Papilio is so "photogenic"!

Hi Guys,
We do plan on getting married one day. Hopefully before we have kids, but not everything in life goes to plan.....

I think anybody who has a partner that they can share their love of Hippies with is very lucky, my man has absolutely no interest at all. He prefers to tinker with cars and anything that goes fast. Although he has never complained about me dragging him out to bulb and orchid farms and doesn't mind me spending money on them.
Anyway its nice to have time to play with my flowers while he's out in the garage. I suppose they all have their good traits or we wouldn't be with them would we?

Hi Jaap,
Your photos are great, I'd love to see some more.
Your Papillio's coloring looks more like mine than Jackie's.
Have you got a photo with a front view?
Oh BTW 5 of the seeds are sending out roots already, Yippee!!

Dizzy - Just be happy that your man "silently" supports your hobby, and will go with you bulb shopping! If it were 20 years ago, mine would be doing the same thing, tinkering with something that goes fast! Since he's older now, and has already spent his youth going fast, he spends a lot of time watching Mixed Martial Arts on satellite tv! Anything in the fight family is fair game... kickboxing, UFC, Pride, BoDog Fights, King of the Cage, etc... But, like you, I am never denied my bulb hobby, and he will, in fact, help me do research on things like growing mediums, fertilizers, etc... and never says no to a bulb purchase... I can't complain! And as I've said, he's fairly interested in the breeding aspect... I fully expect him to help me pick out parent plants, run the information through our breeding program, and explain why they'd make a good match...

It could be worse... he could think my hobbies wastes of time and not be helpful or the least bit interested... I'd say we're both rather lucky!

Congrats on your seeds! How long did it take for them to germinate? I just planted some a few days ago... I know it will take time, but I'm anxious to see a little growth!

Maria - I'm so sorry to hear that your Papillio is sick! Is it a common problem to have the crown dry out? Is this a disease of bulbs, and can it be prevented? I'm not familiar with this illnes... if I had babies on my Papillio, I'd surely send you one, or more! Mine is still a youngster, though... I've actually been thinking about getting a second Papillio... everyone seems to talk about it the most, and it seems to make a really good parent plant. Is there anything you can do to save your bulb?

dizzy, Helas, I made no pics from the front.

My wife only loves hippies when they're in flower.
Then she allows me to have -a few- at the front-windows downstairs.
The remaining time they're in my study, which looks like a jungle with plants and books...

Jodi,

Here are a pic of an amaryllis arrangement. Check out the whole site below.

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Here is a link that might be useful: Chateou Beloeil

Thanks for posting that, Soultan... very colorful! Some arrangements I like... some are just a bit too much... but all are very colorful! I'll say one thing: that's a lot of flowers!! I'd hate to get that florist bill!!

Soultan, those arrangements are so beautiful, regal even!

That was a show, created by Ludwig for the baptism of "Grande-Duchesse Maria Teresa", a new Amaryllis in 2005 in Chateau Beloeil in Belgium. So they foot the bill.

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Grande-Duchesse Maria Teresa

Oooh! I love the color! So rich! Another wish list occupant!

Mariava, I am sure there are people more qualified to comment on the culture of var. reticulatum. It has taken several years for mine to start looking really healthy. But, they have never bloomed for me. The deep green, variegated leaves make them attractive even out of bloom. I have found that apparently they like a cooler shadier location than I had been providing. They would likely do well in my original home town of San Diego.

The picture above, pretending to show the newer cultivar ²Grande-Duchesse Maria Teresa" is an older photo and it is very well known to me.
I saw it, years ago, bevore la "Grande-Duchesse..." had been introduced at all - on the same website at
ludwigamaryllis.nl
and it was assigned "Black Beauty" - and that made sense, since this older hybrid produces only 2 flowers per scape.
Not your fault soultan.

Maria - I guess that your reticulatum have become too moist. The dark color of this species amaryllis indicates that it is a shadow plant, and the water consumption of these is significantly lower as compared to other hippeastrums.
I recommend a complete replantation. Get them out of their pots and inspect them. If you find many red or half translucent, soft, dying roots then the diagnosis is already confirmed. Wash, cautiously, with lukewarm water, removing all loose material until all is pretty clean. Replant into just moist coco fiber substrate (remove excessive humidity out of the wet substrate by compressing aliquots in your fist; then you will obtain the correct degree of remaining humidity) Underneath apply a drainage layer of some centimeters in height (Seramis or expanded clay bullets, 2-4 mm grain size). After planting you knock on the pot walls in order to make the soil settle around the remaining roots. Do not water then, but use a spray bottle with water and spray on the surface until you will have just "closed" the soil surface. Install the pots at a warm, not cool wondowsill place. Not a shadowy windowsill, and not one with burning sunlight either. Just a bright place is perfect.
If you have indications that your bulbs be infected by the tarsonemid mite, which is obvious by red stitches and thin, red lines on the bottom of the leaves then you will have to undertake measures against that because that will finally destroy your little plants.
Wait some days, at least until the soil surface appears completely DRY.
Then begin to water - very cautiously! However, a thick drainage layer will prevent the worst if you overwater.
If the soil surface becomes dark again then you already know that you are overwatering ;)
As far as I can see now, a H.reticulatum which is suffering
does lose its older leaves rather fast, and it carries constantly less than 4 leaves.
The mother bulbs of my two clusters (not yet bloomable) have 6 leaves each, presently, and that seems to be the maximum. I await with the very biggest anticipation the first blooms of this species amaryllis, which is so very rarely displayed in bloom anywhere.
Compared to that, it seems to me as if the derived primary hybrid "Mrs.Garfield" is EASY to bloom!

Very Interesting, Hans. A "Black Beauty" given to me but seems to be "Benefica" now according to the giver and on the way it grew. 4-5 Flowers per scape. He claimed his vendor had mis-labeled it. As Black Beauty only sport 1-2 flowers per scape. Whichever it truly is matters not to me because It is beautiful In addition he gave me a small bulbett of "Grande-Duchesse Maria Teresa". I have been unable to find no information on either the Black Beauty or Grande Duchesse" on the web.

Hi Cindee,
2 flowers is bad enough, but I did not hear about any commercialized Knight Star Lily which sometimes produces but 1 flower per scape.
My information is 2 seldom 3 per stalk.
And, if you did not yet see one real "Black Beauty" before you then you might estimate other dark amaryllis quite comparable, but, o' my conscience, dear brothers and sisters I saw one at the Keukenhof Exhibition in Lisse, The Netherlands, and it was depassing everything in its impressiveness. Almost black, brilliant silky blooms, as if made of brocade fabric, and, yes, two big blooms. Displayed by Berbee & Zonen who where, afaik, holding the company Ludwig in these years around 2000. I was deeply impressed. Unfortunately this happened before I began to do photo recordings, but, on the other hand I am still absolutely sure that even I could not be capable of reproducing this noble, brilliant brocade structure in my photo takings. In fact, the photo above does not reflect the full impressiveness of these flowers as compared to "direct watching"

Sir Hans - As always, you are a never-ending fountain of Amaryllidaceae knowledge! You have a very unique way with words, which makes the reading that much more interesting. When you post, I take notes... knowing that the information will be useful as I delve deeper into the wonderful world of bulbs!

I also get a giggle out of the little smiley face guys you add at appropriate intervals! Very cute!

Hans, m'dear, perhaps this photo may help in identifying the deep red velvety plant originally given the ID of Black Beauty when given to me.
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It was later attacked by some caterpillar that got into the leaves and core and thus killed all my pollination efforts. Fortunately it is struggling to make a come back. I have pulled it from it's pot, cleaned the roots which look healthy, and cut away all damage. I dusted it with cinnamon as well. I am letting it dry out a bit. It will go into cold storage for now and I hope it recovers. Thank you so much for your interest and help!

Jacques Amand offers Black Beauty on its web site. If I can still catch it at the end of November, I might order that one fromt them too.

Sir Hans...Thank you so much for that info on var. reticulatum. I have been searching for infos on their growing habits/culture for quite a while now and could not find much. I did check on their bulb and roots a few days ago and they are fine...no rot. I was thinking that maybe since they are newly purchased bulbs, sent to me with leaves, that they are adjusting to the new conditions. They arrived with just 2 leaves. They are right now in a bright window,no direct sunlight, average temp. 70F. I will do as you told me to repot in coconut coir with a layer of clay bits or horticultural charcoal at the bottom. Do var. reticulatums rest or require dormancy?
True... Mrs. Garfield is more robust than the reticulatums and mine is putting out a fat fourth leaf now.

You see, Maria,

I envy you for your Mrs. Garfield, but don't worry, I will get it sooner or later... When... the price is right. I ordered 9 bulbs from amaryllis.com yesterday, and told her to make sure I get healthy bulbs since I am a repeat customer. Hopefully this melts her heart. Yeah, right. :o) Will report when I get the package. Royal Color's order with the huge Carmen is coming. I hope it will indeed be huge like the last Jumbo I got from them.

I received two bulbs of "Black Beauty" from a friend, who purchased them at J. Amand.
But, these turned out to be another, inferior dark red cultivar. With 4 flowers/scape.
If you direct a closer view on the advertising photo on his website you will already see that a dark red "FOUR-corner-Anaryllis" is advertised there under this name which does promise so much. I was and I am not amused :(

Dear Cindee - the flowers of your velvety red amaryllis are brilliant in color, but they are not Black Beauty either.
On the upper picture of "Grande Duchesse" pardon, "Black Beauty" you can see that these flowers have a hint of tube shape. That is the difference. In fact I don't like the very flat blooms of modern TET hybrids so much. This and another common feature in almost all TETs - the flower segments of the inner circle tend to be much narrower than those of the outer circle - (very obviously visible in the flower on your picture) is to my regret unattractive to me, and thus I have almost lost my interest in TETs. But, direct a prfound view on the upper segments right and left on the picture of Black Beauty! Do you observe the difference?! Yes these segments are nicely rounded. Iam still dreaming of THIS TET knight star lily

So now should I order or not? If it turns out a nice dark variety, it is not worth $17.40 to me. Most of the retailers don't even know what they are selling. Just look at the at Grandeur Willow Creek Garden. This is not how my Grandeur looked like. I like the Grandeur I got. I like the picture on Willow Creek Garden, but if I complained that the flower turned out to be like their picture and not Grandeur, they would say that it looks like the picture so I should just shut up!
MZ was arguing with me when I sent them the picture of Nymph that was supposed to be Aphrodite that It is a white flower with pink and red stripes. It should be Aphrodite... I had to send them some pictures of the real aphrodite to convince them.

Hans!

Before you introduced us to Papilio, I was totally in love with TETS, especially doubled ones.

Papilio is awesome and won my heart as soon as I saw my first bloom, but I am still learning to grow that one successfully.

Then came Emerald, Amputo, Misty, Exotic Star, Pink Floyd and so very many others.

I adore them ALL! And yes, some more than others, but there are not too many that I would not replace if I lost them for some reason.

I agree that Black Beauty would definitely be one that I would treasure!

Having seen the difference in all of the above, I have to agree that there is something very special about the larger roundness of the upper, inner petals.

Forgive me, for I have not exposed to as many varieties or for as many years as you have, so I am so very much in love with almost all of them!

I suppose I will learn more about which ones that I prefer when I am forced to cull my seedlings. Heaven forbid! The unchosen ones will go in the ground and Mother Nature will decide...

Cheers!

Hans, thanks so much for clearing that up. I do love this Depp red amaryallys just the same. Basically, what you are telling me, then, is that the "Grande Duchesse" Bulblet would actually be Black Beauty? I will have to wait a couple years to make the comparrison. Thank you ol' wise one!

No! That was not the meaning of my message.

I do not know why LUDWIG use the old picture of Black Beauty for advetising la "Grande-Duchesse" - because, at first when they introduced the new cultivar, they used another picture. NOW, you can see another photo, which is seemingly "true" since it displays a 4-corner-Amaryllis (4 flowrers per umbel) on the bottom another page of their website:

Here is a link that might be useful: LUDWIG / New Varieties / Large Flowers

OH MY, Be still my heart, the Duchesse is stunning if that is a true photo. Hans, it seems many vendors reuse old photos that are exactly like others, yet put their stamp on them. Why is it so difficult for them to project their own image of one of the plants they are selling. I know we have ranted before about misnaming bulbs too. I do not understand why distributors can not be true to the name and image of the products they are selling. Perhaps us Amaryllis/Hippeastrum lovers are too sophisticated for them? That selling the bulbs we prize are a second thought for them? I am so confused!!

Thanks for clearing up my earlier misunderstanding, my friend. And then there is the thought, why do we care so much about name or ID? My father lost his sense of smell while in the Army in Normandy. He was an incredible gardener and taught me so much about the love of plants and nature. Still, his loss of olfactory, did not deter him in finding the finest flowers, bulbs, plants with the most intense fragrances because he knew my Mother and I would love their smell. As long as it was fragrant he would plant it and learn how to raise it. Perhaps we should interpret Amaryllis more with our eyes than other senses to find what pleases us. I would rather have one hour in my my gardens with my father, than to ever again know what is in a name...he would be so proud of me and my gardens (LOVE YA DAD and I miss you!) Do they have Garden Web in heaven?? I am just rambling on like a crazy woman tonight, but do you get my drift here? This is all making me weepy so I will say good night, friends.

Dear, dear Cindee... I feel what you feel... I lost my parents both to leukemia... my Dad suffered with it for 10 years, in and out of remission... about a year after he passed, my Mom was diagnosed with acute leukemia. Six months later, she was gone. I am so very fortunate that she called me to be with her for that six months... we spent every waking moment together, up early to enjoy the flowers and hummingbirds in her small garden, watching the deer graze in her backyard... we shopped, we took long drives, we talked... it was hard to let my Dad go, but he suffered so much that his passing was almost a relief. Mom, on the other hand, was only sick for a short time... she missed my Dad so much... 50+ years together... she's been gone for many years, but I still cry when I see hummingbirds, and pink flowers always bring thoughts of her... it's so hard to lose both parents... it's like the only link to my past, my youth, is gone... and I sometimes feel disjointed, if you know what I mean... I am one of four adopted children, and my parents were the best, most loving and generous, finest people God ever created... surely, Cindee, there's a special garden in Heaven for people like our parents...

Yes Hans, but that picture is also a stock photo from somewhere else. I have seen this photo labeled as Black Beauty and Bordeaux also. WHAT? Ludwig does not have a first hand photo of their own new variety from 2005?

Good that some amaryllis lovers have the same good memory as I have.
I see that the state of affair is still worse than I thought.
That is just an incredible play with the customers.
I do not know what I should think of such a company.

You see? And Ludwig has a good reputation... I don't think though that it would be so much money to hire a photographer or just buy a digital camera to take pictures of actual products that they offer. And I can't imagine that Ludwig is not producing and selling LUDWIG DAZZLER for instance.

Hi, Soultan is the new Dark red amaryllis even darker than amaryllis Benfica and Red pearl? Thanks.

Can someone tell me where to buy the grand duchesse in the US?
Del

BEAUTIFUL!
Susan