Amaryllis for Sanity or Flower Power in Winter

Amaryllis 'Amadeus'

This week, Chicagoland is taking a page from the tundra and dipping into perhaps historic lows in the negatives. So of course...my first amaryllis bloomed! The other three are dragging their little green feet. I don't really mind. January, I can tough out. It's February and March when I start to get twitchy. It looks like I will have weeks of huge tropical flowers to keep me happy and somewhat sane.

There's quite some complicated taxonomy in the background of my innocent flower. The botanic name for my amaryllis is Hippeastrum and it is native to South America. True Amaryllis are native to South Africa and are sometimes referred to as naked ladies as they first will produce foliage, then go dormant, and finally send up flower stalks. Linnaeus described Amaryllis first, then explorers disccovered Hippeastrum and botanists started wrangling over which plant went where on the taxonimic tree all the way until 1987!

The Hippeastrum we call amaryllis and buy in quantities at Christmas has been a popular houseplants since the 1800s. It's easy to see why. Amaryllis are pretty low maintenance and they reward your neglect with amazing flowers for weeks and weeks!

I get my amaryllis to re-flower every year by forcing the bulbs into dormancy in the fall. I basically stop watering them for six weeks. My father goes to great lengths and tucks them in the basement where it's cool and dark. Mine seem to do fine with just restricting water and happily populate the south window in my study. I have had the occasional scale outbreak, but systemic houseplant insecticide does the trick nicely.

What flowers save your sanity in winter?

Janustory Day 19: Flowers for Sanity

Janustory Day 19: I cling aching and helpless as a summer shower tries to drown me, each heavy raindrop a merciless waterfall.

#janustory #wordcount19

It has felt like a heavy day. I am grateful that my local grocery store ships in pots of primroses for dirt cheap each winter. They sell like hotcakes and it's understandable why. Who doesn't love a small pot of cheerful flowers on a gloomy winter day? I keep them on the windowsill where they get plenty of sun, but stay chilly. Today - flowers for sanity.

Saving My Sanity with the Help of Flowers

Life's been pretty busy, so unfortunately, I haven't been able to chronicle the slow upward spiral of late winter into spring. Oh, wait. Winter is still here. Along with a healthy heaping of snow and ice. I am on strike from shoveling. I'm obsessively watching the buds on the trees and bushes expand by microscopic increments. Spring really is coming. Honest!

 Lincoln Park Conservatory

As usual, I am saving my sanity and that of my friends and relatives by hauling everyone out to the conservatories in the Chicago area. We all immediately relax and breathe deeper when we set foot inside a humid glass house filled with green and blooming plants. Ahhhhhh. The shoulders unknot, smiles tug at our lips and luscious fragrance tickles our noses. Try it. It'll make your whole week better.

To combat winter fatigue, I usually force some bulbs. This year, I am thrilled to report that both my amaryllis came back! I love plants that thrive on neglect. Thems my kind of houseplant. The big Red Pearl is blooming as of yesterday. Who needs amaryllis at Christmas? I need big tropical flowers in February and March! Come here, beautiful.

This year, I potted up all the spring bulbs since days off and weather conspired against me when trying to get them in the ground. My pots of crocus and snowdrops are showing signs of life. At least the crocus is pushing up tiny leaves. I'm holding my breath for the snowdrops. They are one of my favorites.