The Life and Times of Amaryllis

 

At Christmas time, we received a beautiful gift from a good friend. It was an Amaryllis bulb with a bit of potting soil. The bulb is the size of a tennis ball, and after soaking what looked like sawdust in a pot, we stuck the bulb into the soil and sat back. It did not take long for the birth announcement. It's twins!

 

 

One stalk was stronger than the other and spurted ahead.

 

Soon there were four elongated buds which grew very quickly and opened one morning, to our great delight.

 

One by one, the petals spread to seek the light, and soon all four were gracing our end table.

 

We turned the pot every day to keep the stems from leaning too far over as they sought the daylight.

 

A brilliant splash of red on a cold grey winter morning lifts the spirits.

 

And as the second stalk began to bloom ......

 

The flowers on the first one withered and died.

 

And there was the bonus! The runt of the two, actually had five blossoms instead of the usual four.

There are no insects, beating sun, or pounding rain to damage these exquisite blossoms. They are absolute perfection.

Thanks, Elma, for the gift that lasted so long and gave us so much pleasure.