Few plants equal hippeastrums when it comes to a cheerful, flamboyant display in the garden. They are big, bold and brassy, and they come in a dazzling range of colours. However, many gardeners make the mistake of planting just one hippie, or a few small clumps. Instead, take Don’s tip and put in a whole row – then you’ll really make a statement!
Plant details
Common name: Hippeastrum, hippie, amaryllis
Botanic name: Hippeastrum cultivars
Best climate: Hippeastrums grow well in Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and the tropics. In cold areas they can be grown as indoor plants in a well lit position.
Best look:
mass plantings cut flowers pots
Good points:
spectacular flowers wide range of colours and sizes will tolerate light to dappled shade and fairly average soil almost indestructible
Downside:
very attractive to slugs and snails they only flower for 2-3 weeks
Care:
Plant bulbs in autumn in well drained soil enriched with organic matter, such as cow manure. In pots, add Osmocote or Nutricote. An open position in full sun is best, and the neck of the bulb should be showing above ground level. Keep moist during the growing season but allow to dry out a little during July and August. Protect from slugs and snails.
Getting started:
You can buy hippeastrums in bloom at nurseries in late spring to summer, or bulbs are available from May – August from some retail nurseries, specialist bulb growers and mail-order nurseries such as the ones listed below. Bulbs cost around $10 for singles; doubles and imported forms are from about $20.
VIC Blue Dandenongs Bulb Farm, Old Emerald Road, Monbulk. Phone: (03) 9756 6766, fax: (03) 9756 7844. Email: [email protected] Website: www.blued.com.au Patchwork Nursery, PO Box 50, The Patch. Phone: (03) 9756 7277. Bulb Express, 4 Dyson Court, Breakwater. Phone: (03) 5248 1660. Tesselaar Bulbs and Flowers, 357 Monbulk Road, Silvan. Phone: (03) 9737 9811.
NSW Noumea Nursery, ‘Noumea’, Bingara, NSW, 2404. Phone: (02) 6783 2270.
QLD Maguire’s Hippeastrum Farm, 409 Kiel Mountain Road, Woombye. Phone: (07) 5448 5640. Mead’s Daylily Gardens, 264 Learoyd Road, Acacia Ridge. Phone: (07) 3273 8559.