The Amaryllis in a pot

Dear readers,

We all know that Amaryllis is in high demand during the Christmas season, here in Europe at least. It is not only popular as a cut flower, or as a dried and ready-to-plant bulb, but also as a potted plant. Every year millions of potted Amaryllis bulbs are sold all over Europe. Think of garden centers, local flower shops, supermarkets and you name it. Just everywhere. So it happened that Carlos and I visited some of our Amaryllis growers last week. We were just in time to see how Amaryllis Bulbs are potted here in the Netherlands. The story I want to tell you today is about the following: how the Amaryllis Bulbs are planted, stored, sold and offered as gifts during the Christmas season. Because early flowering is important for this bulb, most of the potted Amaryllis are grown in the southern hemisphere in countries like Peru or Brazil. The seasons are reversed there, which is why the flower stems emerge so quickly and bloom within three to four weeks of planting. The pots are filled with potting soil by a machine, after which the bulbs are manually pressed into the soil After this, the bulbs end up on a conveyor belt, where each pot receives just enough water to allow the bulbs to grow From the conveyor belt the bulbs are moved to the right place in the greenhouse. They will stay there for about a week, just long enough to start growing When they reach a height of 5 to 10 centimetres, the bulbs are pressed into the ground again (this time for stability). After this, they are all given a matching card and stored in special flat containers. The Amaryllises are then stored in cold stores at a temperature of approximately 5 degrees Celsius.

This is how millions of Amaryllis bulbs are treated in Europe every year. But I am convinced that similar processes are taking place in other parts of the world. Pretty simple, right? These photos were taken at the Van Velden brothers, one of the largest Amaryllis growers in the Netherlands. They process thousands of Amaryllis every day. This is also evident from the number of trucks that pass by them every day. Now that we are talking about potted Amaryllises, are you also someone who buys this bulb during the Christmas season as a gift or just for your own living room? Please let us know by e-mail. We are thinking about offering potted Amaryllis bulbs for next season as well. After all, we all want to give nice gifts to friends and family. But for this season, in 2024, we are very grateful to see that many of you order Amaryllis bulbs from us. In case you are looking for more gifts for Christmas, here are some of my favorites: This is 'Glee', she has medium sized flowers with a perfect candy cane pattern. Definitely suitable as a Christmas gift! She lasts a long time in the vase and what I also like about this Amaryllis are her wavy petals It wouldn't be Christmas without something white, right? This is 'Polar Belle', a newer Amaryllis that is quite short with a sturdy stem that doesn't fall over and has a double flower. Sometimes it shows a hint of pink, and its leaves grow at the same time as its flower stem, which makes the whole picture even better This is 'Silver Cream', or 'Silver Queen' as she was called before. What I like most about her is the color contrast between the front and back of her petals. Her warm color will always cheer you up when you look at her! Another one with warm colours. If you prefer a double flower, then 'Sunshine Nymph' might be something for you. She is a newer hybrid of the Nymph series and is often confused with her older sister 'Sunny Nymph'. The beauty of this Amaryllis is her improved stem stability so that she does not easily break or fall over under her heavy flowers And last but not least, 'Ruby Star'. She's been in my top five since I first saw her as a teenager in the early 2000s. She's just perfect: a big, sturdy plant with gorgeous ruby-green-cream flowers. She also has a long vase life and her flowers stay beautiful for a long time. She grows without any problems and always steals the show. I always get compliments when she's in bloom 'She's so pretty!'. Some hybrids are just like that, timeless in their beauty

We hope you find something you like among these favorites. And please feel free to send us an email if you have any questions or requests, especially now that our collection offers so many beautiful things this year. Speaking of gifts, we have put together a number of bundles with Amaryllises, spring bloomers and peonies. The total price of these bundles is lower than if you were to buy each item separately. This will leave you with money left over for other fun projects in the garden. Please let us know if you are interested in these bundles.

Another administrative note: next week is the last week that you can order spring flowers such as tulips and daffodils from us. Let us know if you need help choosing the right bulbs. The Christmas season has started, so be there in time before the postal services get too busy. The sooner you order, the better!

Peace, love, and Christmas cheer,

Vlad Hempel