You say amaryllis, I say hippeastrum

Hippeastrum Royal Red

Sarah Raven, never one to shy away from strong colours, expounds on the beautiful amaryllis/hippeastrum…

The Telegraph 16th November 2007

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/3345515/Amaryllis-the-power-flower.html

Amaryllis have replaced poinsettias as Britain’s favourite Christmas plant and that’s a great thing.

These huge South African bulbs make brilliant winter house plants and are the longest-lasting winter cut flower you can buy. As cut stems, treated right, they’ll last nearly three weeks. And, if you take care of your bulbs, they will bloom again and again, putting on an extra inch in girth and producing an extra flower spike every year you keep them.

They’re expensive. But, cut or growing, they are well worth it. Old squares, such as my husband, think they are vulgar and over-the-top. But what, I wonder, is Christmas for? All…