Has anyone seen the Smith & Hawkins kit this season at Target? I bought only one last year as a gift for my friend's mother. I really liked was the pots. They just have this attractive shape that I just cant see in other pots. Whenever I go visit and see that amaryllis in the pot, I just kept thinking I wish I should have bought another kit for myself even just for the pot alone. I wonder where else can I buy pots that look like that....

Speaking of pots, do any of you have a special or pretty looking pot for that one special amaryllis of yours?

Hi there!

I only use unglazed teracotta pots. Unglazed because glaze takes away the breathe-ability of the pot. And teracotta because, well...its wicking action which keeps the roots inside moist but not soggy wet.

If you want some ....er... fancy-ness or antique look to these pots, buy some moss spores. Get some cheap yogurt, no flavor, and mix the two together. Soak the pot well-- like overnight, and brush the mixture onto the pot. Keep the pot moist for the next few weeks by spraying the pots exterior and soon you'll have a mossy pot with a gorgeous hippeastrum in it.

Ryan

To me, unglazed clay is a beautiful material... its shabby chic/country garden look can't be matched... it looks so natural.

It comes in plain and fancy shapes, and there are plenty of sizes, widths and heights, and matching saucers. I like unglazed clay!

Smith & Hawken filed for bankruptcy, they are closing all their B&M stores, though, Target did have some of their stuff last week. There isn't a B&M store near me, I think there is one in Houston.

For good pots it's just a scavenger hunt, look EVERYWHERE, Big Lots, Walmart, the box stores, Home Depot, Lowe's, nurseries, antique stores.... and be prepared, pots are expensive, the cooler they are the more they cost. I've got some from garage sales, Craigslist, sitting on the curb on trash day...My sister lives in Delaware & there is a big outlet mall on the way to Baltimore, they have this garden shop that has such cool stuff! I might have to drive up there next time I visit just so I can haul the stuff home.
Good luck with your hunt.
Tally HO!

I did get one killer pot over the summer that I ordered a jumbo Rilona bulb for - which just came in Friday and I'm anxious to pot up. I'll post some pics when it blooms. Alana

But there are so many different types of pots, and so many styles and materials... there's a good choice available.

I think as long as you make sure it has at least one drain hole in the bottom, you're in good shape!

I live in So Cal, so plastic or glazed pots aren't a major problem. I do have my share of terra cotta pots but they all come in one shape, I want something a little prettier to showcase inside the home for holiday decor.

Excuse my English, I'm from Germany and am not that used to write in English ...

However, I haven't seen this same thing happening to the pots filled with Al's Mix, which is the porous medium I'm now using. I've only been using this medium for a relatively short time, but I like how it affects root growth.

I've only witnessed roots growing on the sides and surface of pots containing organic, decomposed, collapsed soils. The roots are searching for oxygen, and grow toward the best supply. In the case of organic, silty soils, this would be toward the surface or sides of the pot.

It doesn't matter to me if some of the fertilizer leaches out through the pot... I water every time with a diluted solution of nutrients and micro-nutrients, so there's always a good steady supply.

I don't care for plastic... plant roots need to "breathe", and I think that plastic is a hindrance... especially if the soil particle size doesn't allow for decent oxygen/gas exchange through watering.

The plastic versus clay question would be a good one to pose to the folks over at the Container Gardening Forum...

For me, and for the application I need, unglazed clay works much better than plastic.

More plants have died due to improper watering methods than any other one thing. This is a gardening fact. Bonsai Masters will not allow their students to handle any of their trees until they first learn proper watering techniques... an interesting bit of true trivia.

There's actually a discussion going on over at the Container Gardening Forum about clay vs. plastic... I began a thread because I was curious to know what everyone preferred, and even more curious to know WHY they preferred that choice.

Convenience seems to be the main reason behind the use of plastic, although pot weight was also cited.

From a retail standpoint, it makes more sense that the industry would push plastic... profit margins being what they are.

But truthfully, unglazed clay seems to be the choice of most consummate gardeners, and they cite plant health as the reason.

The majority of my bulbs are planted singly, so I go with clay. The smaller pots are relatively inexpensive.

Huge clay pots are out of my budget range... have you seen the prices on some of those giants? A small fortune for anything patio sized!

I hope to do a few experiments next spring... I have two Japanese Maples and a Wisteria Vine, each currently in regular potting soil, and each in a plastic pot. They're going dormant right now, and they'll be stored in the garage over winter. I'd like to do some root pruning to the Wisteria and one of the trees, and pot them in Al's Mix, in clay pots. I'd like to see the growth difference and root difference between the mediums and pots, because I think the pruned tree in the porous mix, and in clay, will do better. We'll see.

Where in so cal? There is a pottery store in Valley Village called Mainly Seconds. Its on Magnolia near Laurel Canyon. They had a full page ad in Saturday's paper. One coupon was 30% off of any item under $100.

I was looking at a blue irridescent glazed pot that was 12.99 and marked 30% off. It would have been beautiful for a Hippe. Instead I went with the 8.5" glazed pots made by Norcal that were on sale for $1.99 each, limit four (with coupon.)

(They also had a couple of GREAT deals on large pots $25 and $30 for big pots that would have been great for a fountain.)

I got three chartreuse and one pale yellow pot. I figure those will go well with Hippes, right?

Of course, now l have to buy new bulbs to fill my new pots ;-)
The hippes I have are planted in 99 Cent Store terra cotta pots.

I stopped by an Armstrong's after Mainly Seconds and their Hippes were pretty much gone. They had two Red Lions left for $19.99. They were mother size bulbs, but still expensive. They had one boxed kit that said it was a Minerva that was grown up out of the box with bloom buds that were going to open pretty soon, I'd guess. Scape was more than a foot tall.

I asked an associate about them and she said they were carrying fewer than last year and people have been disappointed with the lack of variety. I was disappointed that they are sold out. Isn't it early in the season for that?

I purchased one bulb kit at Home Depot. Now I received 3 complimentary 5-6 cm. Mini Amaryllis with my Blooming Bulb order...color unknown. The mini bulbs have root masses from 4"-6" long!

Have no idea how tall the mini ones get, should I stake them at planting, use container potting mix or soilless germinating mix, etc.

I just want them to bloom and not rot...I'll worry about whether I keep them for more blooms after I get them to successfully bloom for a first time.

Share any wisdom with this complete Amaryllis neophyte?

Thanks and sorry for piggy backing on origninal poster's question.

Maybe after bloom time, I'll tag the plants and put them in the ground. The garden amaryllis are so big and happy.

Newbie, jodik has posted some really informative posts and links on potting mediums. You can do a search on this forum (search is at the bottom of the page).

Those mini's could be Hadeco varieties like Bellisimo, Joker, Scarlet Baby, or Trentino! You can always pot them up together. If you don't want to keep them, someone will give them a good home. So either re-gift them or offer them for postage or trade. (Take pictures when they bloom.)

For more questions, I'd suggest you post a new thread.

Welcome.

Houstonpat, good luck! I bet that would be a beautiful planting especially when they grow all crowded in there and start to flower.

Purple clover, I got myself a chatreuse plastic pot from Armstrongs last weekend. Was almost like 8 bucks but it was so pretty I think, that $1.99 ceramic pot sounds so much better though. I live in Ontario and its kinda difficult for me to go to LA.
And whaddaya know, I also use those $99cent terra cotta pots too. Such an awesome deal and luckily for us, they never seem to run out of those. Did you see the bulbs they sell there too? Their selection is not great, but they do have pink rain lilies which are pretty closely related to Hippeastrums and might be even able to cross pollinate.

I've bought bulbs from the 99 cent store. But I now have a varmint of the mole/gopher variety. No new bulbs in the ground for me until my tenants are evicted! I'll just have to stick with hippes for the moment.

I found a nursery in my area that has 20 varieties! I may have to get myself a present this weekend.