The correct spelling for the Scadoxus multiflorus subspecies is actually katharinea, named after Katharine Saunders .... Not a lot of people know that. -----Original Message----- From: pbs-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:pbs-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of J.E. Shields Sent: 27 June 2010 19:46 To: Pacific Bulb Society Subject: [pbs] Haemanthus and Scadoxus Culture I'll post some notes on these two genera here in response to an inquiry. HAEMANTHUS Most Haemanthus seem to be winter-growing, especially those native to the Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces in South Africa. These include the following: amarylloides barkerae canaliculata coccineus crispus dasyphyllus lanceifolius namaqunensis nortieri pubescens sanguineus tristus unifoliatus Others are summer-growing. They are found in eastern South Africa, from Mpumalanga to KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape provinces. These are: carneus humilis humilis humilis hirsutus montanus When the bulb is dormant, keep it absolutely dry. The winter-growing bulbs stay in the greenhouse all summer long, with no water. We do move the pots to beneath the benches, and the glass is painted with a heavy coat of shading compound. The exhaust fan runs most of the time, controlled by a thermostat set at around 80 F (ca. 27 C). The greenhouse air is often as hot as 125 F (52 C) on sunny summer afternoons. Mature bulbs seem to tolerate this. The summer-growing bulbs spend the winter in that greenhouse and the summer outdoors in full sun (and rain). In winter, that same greenhouse may get as cold as 33 or 34 F (+01 C) at night. They spend the winters dry in that greenhouse. Finally, a few species, mainly from the Drakensberg, are evergreen and may need some water off and on all year long: albiflos deformis pauculifolius H. albiflos and H. pauculifolius grow like weeds, but H. deformis barely struggles along under my care. When you grow Haemanthus from seed, try to keep the young seedlings growing continuously for the first two years. This means they have to be in a mild (68-75 F or 20-23 C) environment with long daylight (fluorescent lights on timers for 16 hrs on/8 hrs off) for the entire time. Keep them well watered and well fertilized. Finally at 18 to 24 months of age, when their parent-bulb growing season is starting, move them into the greenhouse and put them on their normal winter- or summer-growth schedule. SCADOXUS I only have experience with Scadoxus multiflorus katherinae, S. membranaceus, and S. puniceus. All three are summer-growing and, under my conditions, deciduous in winter. All three go outdoors in Spring (May, here) after all danger of frost is past and stay there till September (early autumn). S. puniceus is by far the easiest to grow. It blooms in February, just before the new leaves appear. S, membranaceus and multiflorus katherinae bloom less reliably for me; I have the feeling they would do better if they were grown evergreen, but my greenhouse conditions do not seem to allow that. I hope this is of some help to enthusiasts of Haemanthus and Scadoxus. Jim Shields in hot and humid central Indiana USA Note: I have most of but not all of the Haemanthus species I listed, so there is a little extrapolation involved in my comments. ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd. P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Tel. ++1-317-867-3344 or toll-free 1-866-449-3344 in USA