The bulb is exhausted.
This becomes particularly visible if the root development up to now has been rather poor what is very likely when the bulb has been forced very late.
If the stems of your Red Lion had been rather or very SHORT - and the leaf formation was VERY poor until the end of bloomin then this diagnosis would be confirmed.

Hans-Werner

Thank you Hans.

Yes, for some reason, all my Hipps did not start into leafing until the stalks were quite far along this spring. I think I may have left them dormant too long considering the odd weather we've been having. I hope it recovers as I love this bloom.

George

I have some newly purchased bulbs that did this and are just now recovering...VERY SLOWLY. Since I am just now increasing my stock of different varieties of Amaryllis (some coming in from Holland, some from USA) and all of them would be bare root and I have no idea how long the supplier had them in storage, is there anything I can do to avoid this "exhaustion"?

Hi everyone, I was so excited just yesterday, to notice the Red Lion bulb I bought for 9 dollars, has two flower scapes! Is this fairly normal for RL?
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Nice going beetle!

Maria-just give it an aspirin and call the doctor in the morning. lol

Lol Jodic. That post was 18 months ago. Now I think I know better on what to do... :-)

Beetle,
most newly purchased bulbs even come with a minimum two scape guarantee. So two scapes actually is a very common phenomenon in the wonderful world of amarylli.

Thanks cindeea! Thats real good news [about the two scapes] Thanks soultan!!

No problem. Hopefully you will be making thousands of wonderful pictures of your bulb in bloom.

You guys are going to get bored LOL!! But... Look what showed up, a 3rd flower scape!! I think I hit the mother load with this bulb. I will for sure post pics of the blooms! have a great night!
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I have several bulbs with "space" between the outer 2 or 3 layers... I'm sure that they are getting exhausted, flowering as they are without first putting decent root systems out... once they are finished flowering, I assume I should feed them well to help them recover... and I'm sure it would help to put them outdoors, but that will have to wait until the weather breaks in spring...

Maria, how did you make your exhausted bulbs recover?

Yo...ho... look at my bulb today. Just love it!

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I'm wondering if it's normal to have leaves formed at the same time as scapes like it here? Maybe because the bulb has produced leaves that it will only have strength for one scape?

Xuan

South African varieties, for instance, bred so they would show the foliage with the blooms. Yet they are guaranteed two scapes.

Beetle and Xuan, your bulbs are beautys! Keep us posted on the development. I have a number of buds popping up on my Candy Floss, Happiness, Elvas and Zombie. they are all at varying stages so hopefully I will have a progression of beautiful blooms to entertain me while recovering at home.

They will bloom for you just right. You will just have to tell your hubby to turn them around a few times so they show their best faces to you all the time...

The scapes seem to be going in different directions, but its doing ok.
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I have a couple of bulbs that decided to grow scapes at strange angles... I wrangled them up as gently as I could and am urging them to grow a bit straighter with a stake and a bit of twine... I didn't force them as I was afraid the stems would break... I just ever-so-gently tied the stems together, rather loosely... and am hoping the direction they reach for light in will help...

Hey jodi, Thanks for the good advice! I keep trying to turn them a bit every few hours, you know..chasing the sun, but staking sounds like a plan!!

I stuck something under them and slowly, gently force them to the right direction. Right now, I am using an ornamental oil bottle to force the scapes to the right direction. It helps. I also often use my little Buddha to do the job. Check this out:

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You can also see the oil bottle here. :o)

Very nice, Soultan! I love that little Buddha guy! What's he made of? Is it jade, or some other stone? He's so cool!

Beetle... just be careful, and only tie them VERY loosely at first... I'll try to get a picture of one of my tie-up jobs to show you what I mean... the scapes are so fragile that I'm afraid of breaking them, so I very gently urge them in the direction I want them to grow... and, as you say, turning it so it grows toward the light helps a lot, too...

Here are a few shots of my tie-ups... I hope they show how loosely I've them strung...

This stem was really leaning, so I stuck a welding rod in the pot, added a bit of twine, and turned it so it would reach for the sun!
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This Red Lion decided to leaf out instead of flowering, but the leaves want to droop too much, so I gathered them loosely and tied them with a stake stuck in the pot...
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And a closer look...
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Hope these shots help show what they're supposed to; loose tie jobs to keep droopy hippis in line!

The little Buddha is actually just a plastic one. I have no idea where I got it from, but it guards my flowers so nicely and it really goes well with them.

It sure does soultan! Thanks again, jodi, those are the perfect pics to show what you mean!

No problem, Beetle... glad to help!

Soultan, he's the perfect accent for the hippeastrums and the decorative pots they're in! He looks like he's made out of cinnabar or jade... it's a good fake!

It is a good fake and its tummy holds it against the rim of the pot well, so the head props the scape up just high enough to keep it straight.

I need to find something like that... I need a little bulldog to hold up my scapes! Hehe! I will look for one next time we go flea-marketing...

it looks like it might actually BE Red Lion! with all the mis labled bulbs, I had doupts lol!

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Ooh! It looks like it will be a nice red! Re-post when they're open, please!! I'd love to see how they turn out!

Thanks jodi, I'm thinking a couple more days, and there will be pics to share.Meanwhile its a real treat seeing yours and everyones new flowers! also, I bought an Orange Soverien,and a Nymph,so when they bloom, there will be more pics. Man, this CHAD is bad!

You're telling me! I just went in on an order and have Orange Sovereign and Rilona coming! And I just picked up Misty and Amputo the other day! Plus, I'm part of the summer Aussie order...

CHAD has a tight hold on me, and I haven't been able to find any Hippi Rehabs... not that I'd go if there were such a thing! I think I'd have to be dragged, kicking and screaming, away from my bulbs and plants, and locked up in a room without a window so I couldn't see anything green... and I think I'd come out, after lots of therapy, and go straight to a garden center and rip open a bag of soil, bury my arms in it up to my elbows, and inhale that fresh, clean earthy smell that gets us gardeners going!! Then, I'd get hauled away again...

A dramatization, for sure, but it IS hard to say no when faced with varieties of bulbs we don't have yet, and really want... especially if the prices are reasonable!

My Red Lions are finally opening, too, and I think they may actually be Red Lions! Yay!

LOL..you are sooo funny, but true storie, no doupt!! Just read your post to DH, and he says..'sounds like home [here] to me!! personally, this is the most fun I've ever had with one variety of plant. The orchid craze isn't as bad as it was, the gardenia I've got is resting, and pretty darned fussy!,love the few hibiscus,but they have slowed down for the year. all the rest of the houseplants are taken care of by the Hub!
Real good to know your Red Lion IS!! Merry Christmas jodi, and safe travels, have a nog,or whichever and chat soon!

We're leaving early tomorrow morning for up north to see the kids and grandkids, and have Christmas Eve dinner and presents with them... we'll head back home tomorrow evening because we're not taking the dogs with... it will be great to see the grandkids rip Christmas paper off the presents and have fun with their new toys and stuff! Christmas is for kids... if it weren't for them, we'd probably hibernate in front of the tv with frozen dinners!

This is definitely the most fun I've had with a particular plant! Up until recently, I just gardened outside and had the usual array of houseplants... a philodendron, pothos, spider plant, African Violet, mother-in-laws-tongue, etc... I bought a $3 Minerva about 7 years ago, and added an Apple Blossom about 3 years ago...

Then one day, I decided to look up some information on hippi culture because I was having problems with the Apple Blossom, and the rest is history! I had no idea there were this many varieties to choose from! I'm like a kid in a candy store! I can't get enough bulbs!

I've recently developed the orchid itch, too! I always thought they were specialty plants that required greenhouses and expert care... I never wanted to risk killing something that expensive or beautiful... thanks to Cindee, I've learned that there are many types of orchids that the average person can grow, and in the average home! Again, I had no idea there were that many to choose from! I only have 2 small Phals and an Epi Radicans, but I've got my eye on several more, and plan to add to my collection come spring!

So far, hippis and orchids are the only plants that have reached out and grabbed me, but I'm sure I could find more types if I look around a little! I've got a mandevilla vine resting right now, and a plumeria cutting beginning to leaf out a bit... both of those are new plants...

You're lucky that your husband knows how to care for plants... mine hasn't a clue, but does like the hippi flowers! He also thinks orchids are awesome looking, and bought me the purple Phal... he said he almost bought one last night at Miejer's, but didn't have anyone to hold it on the trip home... and he said the spike was really long and full of blooms with the oddest shape and colors! I'm glad he didn't get it... it's too cold here to risk a trip with orchids!

You have a Merry Christmas, too, Beetle, and Happy Holidays to your family, as well!