I'm in the skeptic corner. Sellers come up with new names to sell their stuff that is barely different than prev year's model. Personally, when I started seeing hippies that looked the same as what I already had I stopped buying. Then I rely on sites like this one to keep up on new ones that people may like for hardiness or whatever other exceptional feature. Oh, and of course if I see common ones really cheap I get them and add to areas where I'm trying to create clusters.

in short: a new name doesn't woo me anymore

Jody, have you ever explored the KAVB site? After having gone through the process to register a bulb, I had to do a thorough search to detail how H. Gordie was different from several other bulbs (Megastar, Estrella, etc). The details given for each hybrid can tell you some of the differences.

I will comment that there is one seller who refers to named hybrids by unique names. The fact that several sellers have the Amadeus series, makes me think that this is probably a registered bulb. Check out the KAVB site.

BossyVossy, I'm with you. After a few years of buying a small number of bulbs (lol) I look for unique bulbs that don't die, or require extreme care to keep alive (the exception of course are species). I rely heavily on this site and actual experience from our hippi friends here before adding bulbs.

Kristi, I'll take a look at the site, but I have no where near the depth of knowldege you have in this area so I'll probably get lost in the site :) And I've always wondered why that seller 'renames' certain bulbs but not others - strange.

I personally haven't bought any of the Amadeus series. I am not one of the "have to have 1 of everything" set. I am happy with my extensive collection, as I celebrate my 25th anniversary of growing Hippeastrum.

Maybe it grows better if you play classical music around it.

Ummm... I'm not admitting to anything! :)

Here is a picture I found on facebook.. this was when big amadeus was just a nameless cultivar. I think she works for wff.

wowzers! I could fall in love. Wondering if you can manipulate bulbs with fertilizers to look that way. I should buy a Red Lion and fertilize the c@@@ out of it to see what happens. That is very pretty though. very.

I guess they might me the largest double amaryllis right now and expensive... I hope mine gets that big. I'll be sure to post pics

One of the differences I noticed between this picture of Amadeus, compared to Aphrodite, is the length of the flower spike. My experience with Aphrodite is that the massiveness of the flowers can cause the pot to tip, the spike to bend/break or (gasp) both. For me, Aphrodite needs a lot of sun prior to flowering to develop a strong enough spike to keep it upright. If this bulb naturally produces a shorter, thicker spike it would definitely be an improvement.

I was thinking the same thing, that's why I'm more attracted to the smaller blooming ones. I've had so many breaks in the past...followed by a stream of expletives that I don't want to happen again.

Lol

I can't be sure from that picture but it might be that Amadeus just blooms 2 flowers at a time as does Aphrodite, Lady Jane and a few others. I personally would rather all four flowers open simultaneously rather than 2 then 2. And of course I'm a big fan of the shorter stems!!☺☺