Awwww Jodic...I'm so sorry about your Amalfi. I have a rule that I use with my newly planted bulbs. NEVER water until after 10 days of planting unless it is very very dry already. It works here in my growing conditions. Try it, it might work for you. Good luck!

Thanks, Maria... I think it might be ok, as long as I removed all the rot, and I keep a close eye on it... and as long as I'm careful about watering... I saved my Apple Blossom, hopefully I will save Amalfi, too!

These are good lessons to learn... and if I lose a bulb, it's not the end of the world... I can replace it.

Jodi-Good Save! Let us know how it does after it recuperates from surgery.

I just hope it DOES recuperate! I'm rather angry at myself for not following certain guidelines that I know I should... bottom watering, for instance... the only plant I've ever bottom watered is my AV, and that's an absolute must unless you want instantly rotted leaves! Time will tell whether or not Amalfi will recover... this morning, the scapes still look fine, so... we shall see... thanks for the encouragement!

I just did surgery on several bulbs that came today from McClure and Zimmerman. I haven't had trouble before with them, but almost all 12 of the bulbs were damp and mushy on the outside, and two had rot into the center. I ended up cutting Amorette nearly in half to get firm tissue. Used up a whole shaker jar of cinnamen on them. Has anyone else gotten soft bulbs from them in the last week? I wonder if their Dutch shipment got damp coming to them.

Palmcoastgarden...Hi there girlfriend! How are your collection doing? Mine will be put to sleep soon :-( Some of them have started to rest (no more new growth) and some of them are STILL putting out new leaves inspite of our temp lows here going down to the 40s. I really wish I could still extend their growing period for another month.

Sorry to hear about your MZ order. That's terrible! Improper storage maybe either here in US or Holland? I have not ordered from MZ yet.

On the other hand, I have noticed something from my VE and JS shipment. Their SA bulbs are of poorer quality this year. All of them had bulb necks that were not cut clean and their dry skins had red marks which could be a sign of a desease during the bulb's growing season. My Honeymoon had a rot on it's side too. And what intrigued me most is the label that comes with the bulb. It says "Product of Holland". Are SA varieties being grown in Holland now? I did email Mr. Barnhoorn about this. Unfortunately or should I say fortunately (hehehe...) he just got married and is right now on his honeymoon.

The SA varieties that came from my Wayside order (Piccolo and Zombie) were healthy, firm and clean. They are still not shipping out Dutch grown varieties. I have a feeling that since these are new released varieties that they came directly from HADECO, a good reason for the good quality bulbs.

Note: I recently received my order from Amaryllis Bulb Company. Some of them were "Brasbonitas" varieties (Gilmar is one of them) which are grown and hybridized in South America. ABC is the only company I think that offers them. They are good quality bulbs.

I hope you have good luck with your bulbs, and that they recuperate... This is the first time I've had to cut away rotting tissue... I just hope I did it right... but if you lost about half a bulb, then I think I might be ok... I only had to cut away a few layers on one side.

I haven't placed an order with McClure & Zimmerman yet... although I have checked out the website and added a bulb or two to my wish list...

Jodik,

When I have a bulb I perform surgery on, I always hint it with cinnamon, then let it dry for a whole day in the warmest spot outside or inside of the house, so the cut parts would dry off enough. Then I only plant it so just the roots are under soil, all the bulb is actually sitting on the planting material, sometimes even the basal plate on top of it, not covered. Then when a few weeks later the cuts are completely dried, or the bulb finished flowering and I plant it out, that is when I consider covering only about half the bulb under the soil level... But most of the time I keep the same method, just keeping the bulb itself above soil level as much as possible. So far, I only had one bulb die on me, but it was extremely rotten, so I think no matter what I did to it, it just wanted to go. Most of the time the cut scales just harden and drie off, and the bulb fatten up in front of your eyes.

McClure & Zimmermann:
Very interesting. I ordered from them twice last year. I got HUGE bulbs and they were all dry. I was stunned though that they have shipped in plastic bags, though the bags had holes on them, that is true.
The flowers were wonderful that bloomed from the bulbs BUT Pink Nymph turned out Nymph, Aphrodite turned out Nymph, White Nymph turned out Nymph, another Aphrodite turned out Nymph (replacement), and Chianti turned out Celica...
So as much as I was happy with their bulb quality and immediate and unreserved replacement and charge back capability... I was surprised of the quantity of mislabeled bulbs. This was the highest in any company I have ever tried. That is why I have ordered Aphrodite from Royal Colors finally, because MZ was just not able to send one for me that would bloom Aphrodite.

Soultan, I was also surprised that M&Z bulbs were shipped in plastic bags. Even with the ventilation holes, in the bags, any dampness would be trapped in the bag when shipped. I've already gotten my Amaryllis Bulb Company order, including the Brazilian ones. They look good. Some of the J S bulbs I just got were soft on the outside, but not as bad as the MZ bulbs. I hope this isn't a forcast of the overall quality of the bulbs this year!!! I still have a large order coming from Amand: sure hope they are better quality. I treated the cut bulbs as you suggested, drying them, planting them on top of the soil, and not watering them: so we'll see what happens. If what you say about M & Z's high percentage of mislabelled bulbs, it may end up being a challenge figuring out what I actually have.

What is Amand?
I had a large percentage of mislabeled bulbs in the Double Department. Actually, everything was mislabeled there. All the other varieties they sent to me were true to name. I must say, I ordered about 14 bulbs from them all together and the doubles are the only ones that turned out all Nymphs.
Did you notice though that the earlier you order from them the cheaper the bulbs are, and with time, they raise price on all of them as the season nears?

I water the cut bulbs once, just from below, so the soil sucks up water from the bottom. for their roots.

Jacques Amand, a mail order bulb nursery located in New York. They have a large selection of cybister varieties. Never ordered from them before, but a lot of Dave's Garden forum participants recomend this company. www.jacquesamand.com

Oh Yes. I have tried to order from them last year, but have not gotten even an answer for my e-mail. I really want to order from them, because they have varieties I'd like, but as I said, I don't like a company that does not reply to a customer's e-mail asking about its products.
So please let me know how it goes. Thanks.

My Amand order just came. Bulbs are plump and dry, firm, and much nicer looking than the MZ order. One substitution on a cybister. So I am very pleasantly surprised for once.

Substitution? Then if I order from them, I will have to make sure they understand I am not interested in substitutions. They are too expensive for that.