My heart fluttered when I peeled back the holiday wrapping and revealed its contents. I have been coveting this particular amaryllis variety — ‘Chico’
(Hippeastrum cybister) — for years. I saw it once in person at a spring bulb show and it is every bit as cool as it looks in photos. The flowers are thin and spider-like, coloured in shades of white, green, and burgundy. It reminds me of an orchid, a cluster of long and twisting petals that appear to be moving. It sort-of reminds me of a much thinner and smaller ‘Rio Negro.’ I had to grow it. And now I can!

Recently, my friend Barry mentioned an amaryllis called ‘Sumatra’ that he had purchased at a hardware store in Montreal. He said it was a cybister amaryllis, a South American species that tend to produce very whispy, dramatic blooms on smaller bulbs. His description reminded me of the diminutive Sonatini bulbs from South Africa. It wasn’t until I looked at Chico’s package that I realized that it is a cybister amaryllis. And so is another favourite green variety that I still own, ‘Evergreen.’ Funny how these connections come about. It’s humbled me once again, making me realize just how little I know about a plant genus that on the surface seems to be nothing more than an over-hyped Holiday footnote.

Unfortunately, you may have some trouble sourcing these this year. I did some searches of my favourite bulb suppliers and came up empty. Everyone has sold out for the season. That said, you may have better luck looking locally at specialty garden shops. Now is when many shops start to put amaryllis bulbs on sale!

Further Reading

• How to Plant an Amaryllis Bulb
• Growing Amaryllis with Dugald Cameron