I, too, have a very slow Pink Diamond growing a scape... it's the slowest scape I've ever watched grow! Don't worry... just be patient... the scape will grow and eventually bloom, but even if it doesn't, it won't rot inside the bulb. If it does die and dry up, simply cut the dried scape off, and allow it to grow its leaves and recharge for the next bloom cycle.

There is plenty of variability between bulbs... some will grow the scape and bloom before leafing out, some will grow scapes and leaves at the same time, and others will just grow leaves and skip the bloom cycle for one reason or another. As long as the bulb gets as much sunshine as possible and careful watering and feeding, it will build up its energy reserves for the next bloom cycle.

A gardener's best friend is patience!

Okay, patience it is. I saw your photo of your PD and it looks like a fat and nice scape coming. Sorry you are under the weather, and hope you'll be up and after those many trays of seeds. Thanks for the response, I'm always so happy that people such as yourself are willing to answer questions.

Barb

Thanks, Barb! I'm only too happy to spread the knowledge around when it comes to Hippeastrum bulbs! Actually, any gardening I can help with, I'm glad to. I was a beginner once, and I had a lot of questions... I'm so happy that others took the time to help! Gardening is about sharing!

I feel a little better today... I'm hoping it was just a 24 or 48 case of flu. I just hate being sick... I feel bad enough without the added ick of flu symptoms!

I must say, this Pink Diamond is about the slowest grower I've had so far! It's just creeping along, a little bit at a time... other bulbs seem to shoot up scapes and open a lot faster. I'm hoping this flower is something special... it ought to be with such a long wait to see it!

Patience is a necessary part of any gardening, really. Whether you're waiting for seeds to germinate, or bulbs to root in, or flowers to open... we're at the mercy of Mother Nature! And it helps to let her do her thing in her own time!

Well, at this point the scape is a goner. It is all wrinkly and half of it is drying up. It only still is peeking out about three quarters of an inch, so it would take major surgery to cut off the scape. The leaves look really nice, though, so there is hope for the future. I'll just have to look at my blooming Voodoos, and keep an eye out for Jodik's PD when it finally pops. Thanks.

Barb

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:386388}}

The scape aborted, most likely due to stress... it seems like there were quite a few new bulbs that were very stressed this year. I'm sorry to hear that your Pink Diamond lost its first scape.

Most of the stressed bulbs seemed to be the Hadeco miniatures imported from South Africa, which is understandable as they have traveled halfway around the world to reach us, stopping off in northern Europe before continuing on to the States. They also spend time detained by Customs, and they originate below the Equator, so they have every right to be a bit stressed.

The Pink Diamond bulbs from Walmart have no excuse, really... and I can't think why some of Walmart's bulbs are behaving poorly. By the way, my Pink Diamond turned out to be a semi-stressed Minerva... it did bloom, but not very well. The blooms never opened all the way, were on a short, stubby scape, and only lasted a few days. I'm very disappointed, but should I really expect too much from a $3.98 kit bulb from Wallyworld? Probably not.

The good news is that with proper care over the next year, these bulbs will re-energize and bloom as they should next cycle. It's unfortunate, but these things do happen. Hang in there!

Oh, I'm hanging in there, it's half the fun. I wonder if mine will end up being a Minerva. That would be fine,too, as they are pretty and I don't have one. We'll just have to wait and see! My appleblossom one was not growing in the box when I got it, had some nice roots, and generally looked pretty good, which is good as it was my first one and I didn't know what I was in for. This one was growing in the box, but it did have some roots that looked okay. It will recover. Well, live and learn. Thanks.

Barb

Minerva is a beautiful variety, and I have 4 of those already! Two I bought on purpose, and the other two were supposed to be other varieties!

Growing Hippeastrum teaches us a lot, but the biggest lesson is patience!