Gardeners plant amaryllis bulbs for the gorgeous, trumpet-shaped flowers that bloom in incredible shades from white through orange and red. The long, strap-like leaves are attractive, but it’s the lily like flowers – exotic and tropical – that are the star of the amaryllis show. So what’s going on when amaryllis grows leaves but no flowers? When an amaryllis has no flowers, just leaves, you need to look at how you are caring for the bulbs.
Non-Blooming Amaryllis
Every amaryllis is a non-blooming amaryllis some of the time. To figure out when it is normal to see no flowers on amaryllis plants, you need a basic understanding of the garden life of an amaryllis bulb.
When you first plant an amaryllis bulb, it has no flowers or foliage. It is simply a bulb, but it has potential for great things within its papery coating.
Plant a new bulb in a tight pot with potting mix and just a little potting soil on the bottom. Water it well. In a few weeks, a thick flower stalk will shoot up, followed by the flat leaves. Once the flower starts blooming, it may continue to flower for seven weeks or longer.
Amaryllis All Leaves and No Flowers
When you try to get your amaryllis to rebloom, you may find that the amaryllis grows leaves but no flowers. If it turns out that you get no flowers on amaryllis plants, one of several things may be amiss.
Amaryllis grows leaves but no flowers if you try to get the plant to rebloom too quickly. The bulb needs time to store up nutrients, followed by an essential dormant period.
Once you see the flowers fade, trim off the stalks but not the leaves. Set the pot in a well-lit spot, and keep watering and feeding it every few weeks until the leaves fade. During this time your amaryllis has no flowers, just leaves.
Only then should you stop watering and let the bulb dry out. The bulb needs to sit 6 to 12 weeks in a cool, dry, dark area before you try for more flowers.
If you fail to give the plant its rest period, you may see leaves but no flowers on amaryllis. Likewise, if you fail to allow the bulb to rebuild its nutrients in a sunny location after the flowers fade, the result may be amaryllis, all leaves but no flowers.
