Should Amaryllis have its leaves cut in December (When should all the leaves of Amaryllis be cut)

How to cut the leaves of Amaryllis and to what extent

When cutting the leaves of Amaryllis, you can usually cut off the branches and leaves that grow too long above the bulb . But don't be too heavy-handed, usually just keep 3 to 5 cm above the bulb.

If the pruning is too heavy, it is likely that the bulbs of Amaryllis will grow poorly, thus affecting the plant's ability to bloom again next year.

When to cut the leaves of Amaryllis

The pruning of Amaryllis leaves should be done in the autumn and winter seasons , specifically between October and November . The climate during this period is just right, and it can recover faster after pruning.

But after entering December, the leaves of the amaryllis we grow at home are still green and still growing. If you want it to bloom during the New Year, hurry up and take care of it.

Leaf cutting and water control

After entering December, if your potted amaryllis is still growing leaves, and the leaves are very green, what we need to do is to cut off the leaves, and try to keep more than 5 cm when cutting the leaves. After pruning, we need to control the water. What is water control?

  Just don't water it at all and let the soil in the pot dry out completely. This will slow down its growth and put it in a non-growing state.

Low temperature vernalization

After we cut off the leaves, its growth will be weakened because there are no leaves for photosynthesis. The most important point is to put it in a low temperature place.

If it is in the northern region, we move directly to an environment with a temperature between 0 and 10 degrees. Try not to be lower than 5 degrees and not higher than 10 degrees.

The key is to stop watering it and not expose it to light. If you do this for about a month, its flower buds will be completely differentiated.

If you are in the southern region, it is also very simple. After we cut off the leaves, we just need to remove it from the soil.

Keep the root system about 10 centimeters long and cut off the excess. Then put it in a sunny place to dry the moisture on the surface. Let the roots shrink a little and let the wounds on the leaves dry a little.

After cutting it, find a piece of thick cotton or toilet paper, wrap it up and put it in the constant temperature refrigerator.

Remember to control the temperature in the constant temperature refrigerator and don't let it fall below zero. Otherwise, your Amaryllis bulbs will freeze into popsicles. Let it stay in an environment of about 5 degrees for a month, and we will complete the flower bud differentiation.

After completing the above two steps, the flower buds will naturally differentiate completely. We can take it out and put it in a place with scattered light for a day or two to let it adapt to the indoor environment.

After that, we can move it to an environment with light and temperature above 15 degrees, and water it directly. It will grow rapidly in this temperature, and finally grow flower swords.

It takes more than a month from planting to the growth of its flower stalks, and the temperature must be controlled not to be lower than 15 degrees. In this way, during the Chinese New Year, it will definitely grow taller and bloom directly, and you will have flowers to see during the Chinese New Year.