Amaryllis Bulb Roots

If you bought your Amaryllis bulb in a kit you may notice that your bulb has no roots or your bulb may have a few dried and shriveled roots like in the image above. The reason many bulbs in kits look like this when you first buy them is because they were grown outside of the country. This Amaryllis bulb was grown in Israel and in order for it to be imported to America the grower had to remove all the soil from around the roots. During the cleaning, packing and shipping of this Amaryllis bulb most of the roots have been lost.

Compare the roots above to the image of the roots in this link and you'll see a remarkable difference in the size and health of the roots. The Amaryllis in that link was grown in America and while still sold bare-root (without soil) you can see where the grower didn't have to remove as much of the roots to comply with government regulations.

When selecting the bulb in the image above I followed the instructions from that link in choosing it and while the roots look dead the bulb will produce new roots and grow. Many growers recommend sitting the roots of your bulb in warm water for a few hours when you are first potting your Amaryllis bulb. I've never done this with my Amaryllis bulbs but it surely can't hurt and it may help in rehydrating the dried roots. If your bulb came with dead looking roots like in the image don't be overly concerned because it will produce new roots.