Bulbmeister.COM - Discussions

[nestor]

My lycoris radiata here in northeast Florida go dormant every May. Many are gone in April, especially with the dry spring that we have had. They start to bloom faithfully late August, early Sept.
My golds, purchased from Bulbmeister, went dormant immediately after planting in March. This is not unusual for any lycoris, as they do not like to be moved. Mine stay in the ground year round. My soil is very sandy. They seem to do best in almost full sun. If they get more than a few hours of shade, they will not bloom. I have great success with reds and have 2-3000 as a border around most of my beds (20-40% were in bloom last year). It is nice to have the green foilage all winter.
They have a tendency to pull themselves down deeper. After a few years, it is not uncommon to have a bulb form above the older bulb. They typically form two offsets. The offsets start out flat, one on each side, then gradually form a more rounded bulb after a year or two.
Most winters we get into the mid 20's on at least several occasions. Every 3-4 years we get a dip into the upper teens. Even shallow bulbs seem to do fine as long as the neck is just below the soil. Nestor White

[kmirvin]

Dear Nestor:

Thank you for the very informative discourse on Lycoris radiata. Mine have almost all withered back. The L. aurea are in the process of withering back, too. I'd say about 50% have done so, completely.

What are your comments about water during summer dormancy? I'm of the leaning to provide some irrigation every 4-6 weeks, if no significant rainfall occurs.

[nestor]

Here in NE Florida, cold zone 8-9, we have very sandy soil. We get lots of rain in a typical summer, and it is "death" for most bulbs that require a winter chilling like tulips, hyacinths, daffodils, etc. They just rot from the heat and moisture. If they do survive, they do not get cold enough to bloom, in most cases anyway.
Lycoris seems to do fine with the moisture even though they are dormant. This could be different with a moisture retentive soil, for example keeping bulbs in a heaver potting mix.
The only problem I have with lycoris is if the bulb gets more than a few inches deep. A second bulb will form closer to the surface and the lower one will often rot. Lycoris seem to do better near the surface like amaryllis. I water at least twice a week in dry weather with at least 1/2" per watering except for the winter. I have not experienced any problems. In the winter I might water twice a month, if we do not have rain, but I do this mostly for the St. Augustine grass, which is dormant but will die if it gets too dry.
My feeling about dormancy on just about any bulb is that a small amount of water does not seem to hurt. Most of my amaryllis stay in the ground in the winter, but when I keep them in pots where they get rain, they are more likely to rot. The ones in the ground are fine. There is just not enough evaporation from a pot in the winter, but in the ground the mositure either evaporates or is drawn down below the roots in a few days by gravity.
My experience is that container gardening is far more work, kills more plants and does not produce plants as nice as ones planted properly in the ground. I try to grow as few plants as possible that cannot survive the full range of the seasons. Providing an "artificial environment" or space to store them is too difficult.

[kmirvin]

Like clockwork, my Lycoris foliage to varying degrees are starting to die back. Depending on your planting zone, you may have already seen this happening, or you will see it as we progress though the month of June. My L. sprengeri are looking the most "perky" still.

[lovelygirl]

Posted on Friday, January 18, 2008 - 10:58 pm: Edit Post Delete Post Print Post
Lycoris
I look for it in
http://company-catalog.info/Keywords/Lycoris/
but it's wrong.
I am sorry sorry,my english is poor.
I like lily,so beautiful.

[kmirvin]

Posted on Tuesday, January 22, 2008 - 10:51 am: Edit Post Delete Post Print Post
Dear xiaowei:

I do not know if this company is still in business in China, but Catch Flower Company used to have Lycoris sanguinea available. The link provided is to their online order form, which has contact information. I hope you can find a source. Thanks for visiting.

[Gaby]

Thanks Nestor, it was interesting to read.
_________________
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