Lycoris squamigera is flowering

[Hans J]

Hi Amaryllid fans ,

About 10 years ago I tried to collect plants of the genus Lycoris ...

At the beginning I planted these in pots which I kept in the winter in the greenhouse .. this did not work very well and I lost many bulbs...

Later I tried to plant the bulbs in my beds - but I also had losses.

So I gave this attempt on ... seemingly but some onions have already survived several years in the garden (in the spring was to be seen at this point foliage)

A few days ago I saw buds coming out of the ground ... I was really very excited (there was also a label with the name Lycoris squmaigera / 2009 bought in a nursery in France)

The blossoms now grew more and more (about 70 cm) - today with a bit of sun I could now make first pictures.

I do not know now whether the tropical weather of the last time or the size of the bulbs is decisive ... in any case, I am very happy about this beautiful surprise

Enjoy
Hans

[Maggi Young]

Amazing!

[johnralphcarpenter]

 Yes, well done! Mine produces leaves every year but no flowers. Time for a rethink.

[Anders]

Great flowers, Hans. I never had flowers on squamigera, and the slugs love them so they grow smaller every year. As a last attempt, I have moved some of them to the green house where I apply a generous sprinkle of slug pellets.

I have only seen L. squamigera, L. radiata and L. aurea (commercial form that may not be aurea at all) from EU nurseries, do you have any of the more rare species in your collection?

Anders

[Hans J]

Hi Anders ,

many thanks
I had never slugs on my Lycoris ...but my area is maybe more dry

From my earlier collection only L.squamigera has survived ...

I had in my best time :
aurea
elsae
incarnata
longituba
radiata
radiata (triploid)
shaanxiensis
spec.ex Chen Yi 2004
sprengerii
squamigera
sanguinea var. kiushiana

The most came from private swaps ...only few from nurseries

You could ask here :
http://www.bulbargence.com/m_catalogue/index.php?id_categorie=15

or ask my friend Renate Brinkers ...she could maybe help you :
http://www.pflanze-und-co.de/

In earlier time was a good nursery in Denmark : Larsen ...I don’t know if they still exist ...

Good luck
Hans

[wooden shoe]

And you have a good bunch of flowers too! I never had much success. I have planted bulbs and seeds of various Lycoris species. Most are still there, but with various foliage from year to year, slowly increasing, then a year nothing or very little and then slowly crawling up again. You are the first with flowers in NorthWest Europe as far as I know, so it must be possible. I will keep on trying!

[Hans J]

Thanks Rob 

maybe it is because I live in the warmest part of Germany ?
...and we had some really hot days in this year ( with more than 30° )

Good luck for your plants
Hans

[pehe]

.......

In earlier time was a good nursery in Denmark : Larsen ...I don’t know if they still exist ...

Good luck
Hans

Hi Hans and Anders,

Here is a link to H. Larsens nursery: http://www.stoubytropeplanter.dk/index.php
The catalogue is only in Danish, and there is no Lycoris, but try ask him. Sometimes he has other bulbs not listed.

Best wishes
Poul

[arilnut]

Lycoris  sanguinia

[Anders]

Hi Poul

Thank you for the link to Larsens nursery. He has an interesting assortment. My experience with his old homepage was that he couldn't actually supply all of the listed plants, but I still received some nice plants from him. I will ask for Lycoris.

Anders

[fermi de Sousa]

Lycoris squamigera is one species I've had no luck with in the past - possibly because the bulbs came from NSW and were not acclimatised to our conditions (or because I planted them in the wrong place!).But I saw that it was available from a local supplier, Bryan Tonkin Bulbs https://www.tonkinsbulbs.com.au/ so on the weekend I bought some and now have to work out the best place to plant them - any advice?
cheers
fermi

[jshields]

Hi Fermi,

Around here, Indiana (USA), they can take full sun but do better with partial shade.  Your climate might demand more shade.  They need to have some moisture all year round, including while leafless in summer.  They probably need some chilling in winter, but I'm not sure about this.  There are other Lycoris better suited to sub tropical climates than squamigera.

Jim

[fermi de Sousa]

Hi Jim,
Thanks so much for your reply.
We're hardly subtropical in this part of Victoria but I think it failed before because it was in too dry a spot.
I have a spot under a deciduous tree that gets some water in summer so that might be where this Lycoris will do best,
cheers
fermi

[Rick R.]

What Jim says about squamigera holds true here, too.  Up here, farther north, they actually bloom better in full sun, but then I often have problems with them coming up too early.  It's not uncommon for me to have to put a bucket over foot high spring foliage to endure several consecutive days of highs in the 20s°F (-6 to -1°C) and lows in the teens (-12 to -6°C).