Hortica said: As with most South American bulbs, they are initiated to flower by a seasonal change.
@hortica, at issue here is the non-flowering of the OP bulbs that one would expect to be flowering on a yearly cycle. To say that the modern hybrid Amaryllis 'requires' a period of dormancy to initiate flowering does not rule out other reasons a five-year bulb may not be flowering.
I'll wait to hear the responses from the OP to my two questions before I claim it's a 'lack of dormancy' that is preventing flowering.
University of Florida Extension said:
FAILURE TO FLOWER
Amaryllis plants sometimes fail to bloom. This can be caused by a number of factors:
_ Digging the bulbs too early, i.e., before the leaves yellow and die back.
_ To much shade, which reduces the plant's ability to manufacture food and results in loss of vigor.
_ To rich a soil, too much nitrogen fertilizer, or too much water, any of which can cause amaryllis to produce leaves at the expense of bulb growth and flowers.
Amaryllis can be forced to bloom in late winter by inducing a dormant period. Dig the plants in fall and place them in a dry, shaded area for 6–8 weeks. Remove declining foliage, replant, and provide normal care.
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publ...
I will suspect first that the OP Amaryllis is not getting enough 'growing season' strength (perhaps to little sunlight indoors?) and second, it may be receiving to much love- and is happy, which essentially brings us to the third option to try: a 'trigger' to initiate flowering -perhaps a dormancy period would be this trigger- perhaps not. That's the same progression as the quoted article by the Extension quoted above.
I do disagree that a modern hybrid Amaryllis "needs" the dormancy period to flower, but agree they often go into a dormancy period on their own. They also respond very predictably when we manipulate this dormancy period for storage, shipping and timing blossom periods. Some 'South American' Hippeastrum species are 'evergreen,' as is H. Papillo . It's interesting that H. Papillo is in many parental lines of modern Hipps, so this evergreen tendency certainly may express itself.
https://www.pacificbulbsociety...
This may be of interest. It's a dormant bulb I was using for propagation, showing the bloom spikes inside.
I posted that to this thread.
The thread "LOOK INSIDE a dormant Hippeastrum bulb- showing developing blooms" in
Amaryllis and Hippeastrum forum
@hortica, I do appreciate your link to the PBS wiki- as I've been a member of the Pacific Bulb Society (PBS) for a few years.
Some articles relate to specific species bulbs and their behavior or culture, though, of which our modern hybrids are often created from. I recommend PBS articles and the forum as a wealth of knowledge.
