Amaryllis color change

16 years ago

I have had the same Amaryllis bulb for 5yrs. When it was first purchased it was in a typical narrow tall pot and bloomed a beautiful double headed pink blossom. That following winter I placed the bulb (still in the soil)in a small barrel with a lid in a cool (40 to 50 degrees)room in our home. In March I would take it out and water it and keep it in a solarium in our home and it would slowly emerge and in May I would plant it outside along with the many babies it developed. For the next 3 years I would repeat the same steps and it has continually bloomed the double headed coral pink color. For the first time this year, I decided to leave it in the pot, keeping in mind that the bulb was still in the soil from the garden it was planted in the previous spring with only a small amount of topsoil added in the last week before it bloomed. This year, it's 5th year it bloomed a very vibrant RED. Could someone please tell me why this would happen? One of it's offspring's is still in a pot and is still Pink.

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jim_thomerson

16 years ago

I had an Echinocereus cactus which had deep purple blooms when it bloomed in the pot I bought it in. I planted it in the yard and the next year it bloomed with pale purple blooms. Unfortunately the net year it died. So maybe there is some environmental thing in the mix. Another possibility would be a somatic mutation in the original cell of the flower bud.

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Comments (6)

ohmiah
16 years ago
I don't know why it changed but I would love to see pictures! :)
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kaboehm (zone 9a, TX USA)
16 years ago
This year we had a very harsh winter on the Gulf Coast. Many of my amaryllis bloomed with much more vibrant colors than before and theses were reblooming plants that had bloomed each of the past several years. I would say that environment has so much to do with it. It was very apparent this year.

Regarding Jim's cactus...the plant when it was purchased had been grown under ideal conditions, fertilized to the hilt, etc. It was in prime condition to attract a consumer. The next year the growing conditions (water, soil pH, etc) changed...and it bloomed a paler shade. Many of us have noticed that the same amaryllis hybrid appears different based on growing conditions (light, water, fertilizer...etc).

Kristi
cottynew_gmail_com
15 years ago
I purchased a "Red Lion" Amaryllis 3 years ago. this year it is orange and white. While beautiful, I prefer the red. Why did the color change so drastically?
brigarif Khan
15 years ago
Colder the climate, stronger the colours.
David Blake
5 years ago
My in-laws were given 6 vibrant red amaryllis as a wedding gift in 1943. By the 70s they had a yard full of vibrant red amaryllis. Absolutely beautiful.
In 2000 when we moved back to fl they gave us 30 bulbs. They all stayed red except for a small group that ended up smaller and orange - not nearly as pretty. I would always take the pollen from the prettiest ones and cross pollinate the puny orange ones. By now I probably have a 100. Well, the last 5 years I get some orange, pink and white, maroon and white and a single white one. It was only white one time. If the pollination just effects the seeds genetically, why are my long time bulbs changing colors so drastically and in different ways.