COLOUR TO LIFT WINTER’S GLOOM
In the empty space left by Christmas decorations post Twelfth Night, I feel the need for something dramatic. Enter stage left, a large pot of amaryllis ‘Green Goddess’, like gaudy loudspeakers, trumpeting their charms. “Way over the top” is often the reaction to some of the bi-coloured double divas, but I can understand exactly why their plant hunter shouted with joy when he discovered amaryllis on a Chilean mountain top. Controversy even reigns over their naming, but it was agreed at the 14th International Botanical Congress in 1987, that “Amaryllis” should be used for cultivars of the genus Hippeastrum, sold to flower indoors. These big, fat bulbs with enormous crimson, dark red, white and cream frilly lily-like flowers are the result of commercial hybridisation between South American and South African plants, where they grow in the wild. I like to see amaryllis planted in fives or sevens; singly they look out of proportion to their pot. I grow mine in an old terracotta dough bowl with plenty of drainage holes, filled with John Innes No 2 compost lightened with perlite or grit, because they hate a soggy bottom. When you buy bulbs, soak their roots overnight in a jam jar half-full of water, but keep the bulb dry. Planted any time between October-January, the bulbs will flower 6-8 weeks later, so I planted mine three years ago in November to have them flowering now. Amaryllis like a snug fit in their pots – with maybe a thumb’s width distance from the edge – but plenty of root space, that’s why potted singles need to be sited with care; if they are top heavy they will topple. They like to show their shoulders above soil level. Place your pot somewhere light, warm (70F/21C) and draughtfree. Amaryllis will flower for nearly two months, especially if you move your pot somewhere cooler as the buds burst. As their stems start to snake their way up through Home help: clockwise from top, while amaryllis Merengue’ stands tall to help lift the winter mood, wintersweet, white hyacinths and can all add a splash of colour Battening down the hatches and securing the tunnel cloches with tent pegs in my vegetable plot, over winter salads, parsley, sorrel, garlic chives and chard, so I can still rustle up a plateful or two in between showers. the soil, they should be staked and turned regularly or they’ll grow towards the light. Water as the soil dries, but make sure you don’t leave their feet wet in their saucer. Feed fortnightly with tomato fertiliser. When past their best, move from centre stage, cut the flower stems but let the leaves die back naturally. The plant stores nutrients in its leaves, so keep well fed and watered. I move mine outside once the danger of frost has past, then into a dark shed in September to lie dormant until November when it’s comeback time, fed and watered, to resume their starring role in my kitchen. Re-pot every two or three years after flowering, and there’s a chance your bulbs could have a long career – up to 75 annual performances. Look for bulbs at jacquesamandintl.com, which has the best selection, also jparkers.co.uk and vanmeuwen.com – I loved spiky orange ‘Merengue’, green-and-yellow ‘Sulphur Queen’, starry red ‘Lima’, rose pink ‘Gervase’ and maroon velvet ‘Black Pearl’. Amaryllis cut flowers can be bought from florists. To make them last, insert a cane up the stem, fill the stem with water and twist a rubber band around the end. Preserve with two tablespoons each of white vinegar and sugar, and half a teaspoon of bleach per quart of water. Change the water every three days and snip off ½in of stem. Scarlet blooms look lovely with red dogwood stems and rosehips, and the white ladies shine with cedar branches and eucalyptus twigs. I planted a large pot of Narcissus ‘ Cheerfulness’ that’s blooming by my front porch. Prop up with pussy willow stems to keep them from getting windswept, or brought into the house. White hyacinths potted in October will also fill the house with perfume. Orange calla lilies, cyclamen and climbing Hoya carnosa – the waxy flowers are all performing now. Slim pickings from the garden, but twigs of hazel catkins, Viburnum bodnantense, wintersweet and witch hazel, with arum leaves and ivy berries in differentsized glass vases ranged along the mantelpiece, will lift the heart and raise the spirits. How to garden in all weathers,