Q: About a month ago, I harvested two seed pods from a beautiful waxed Amaryllis that was done flowering. The pods are in the refrigerator. One opened and the seeds are black, so maybe they are not good. I prepared a few flowerpots with expanded shale and potting soil.
What do I do with them? Please let me know the next steps. The original bulb, sans wax, is continuing to grow, albeit in a weakened state due to saving the pods.
A: Amaryllis are tropical plants, so the seeds shouldn't be cold. Did the seed pods start to turn yellow and split open? That is how you know they are ripe and ready to plant. The seeds are flat and almost paper thin. The seeds are supposed to be black. If the pod was beginning to open, they are probably OK.
You can let them dry out for a few days before planting. If you do need to store them, they can go in a sealed bag and in a cool (in the 60s) location for a week or two. They need to be planted as soon as you can to prevent them from drying out. There are several ways to do this. Set them on potting soil in trays or pots, then cover them with a 1/8-inch layer of soil on top. Get the soil damp and place the pots in a plastic bag to keep the humidity up. They should sprout in a week to a month. Another way is to wrap them in a damp paper towel and place them in a sealed plastic bag. Check the seeds every few days. When they sprout a root, they can be planted by making a thin hole in the soil for the root and setting the seed on top of the soil. The seed doesn't need to be covered. The leaf that comes up will look like a blade of grass.
I think if the seeds haven't been too cold for too long, they should grow without problems. If they were too cold for too long, they probably won't sprout, but the only way to find out is to plant them. It does take several weeks to a month for them to sprout, so keep the soil damp.
Have you watched the Greener View YouTube channel video on waxed Amaryllis bulb care? There are several videos about Amaryllises on the channel.
Q: With all the recent rains, part of our vegetable garden flooded. The plants are starting to recover. Do you think it is safe to eat the produce, or should we start over?
A: Don't consume any produce that has been underwater if there is any chance that the flood water is contaminated with animal manure or sewage lagoon water. If the fruit is discolored, throw it out. I would replace any leafy green vegetables with a new crop, no matter what. New fruit that develops on the plants as they recover should be fine. If any of the new fruit might develop on the ground, I would place newspapers or plastic under the fruit before it gets to the ground.
DIST. BY CREATORS.COM
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