It's amaryllis season again!

[Dusty Ol' Man]

Growing in the front garden.



The buds will be deep red.

[WaterWitchin]

Nice! No outdoor amaryllis growing here! What's the groundcover that looks similar to liriope but has a different flower?

[Clawhammer]

I planted my Christmas amaryllis outside this year... We'll see if they come up next year, pushing it here in zone 8b

[estación seca]

Hippeastrum x johnsonii is supposed to be reliably hardy to zone 7, and some nurseries claim people grow it to zone 5 with protection. It needs excellent drainage.

[Clawhammer]

Originally Posted by estación seca

Hippeastrum x johnsonii is supposed to be reliably hardy to zone 7, and some nurseries claim people grow it to zone 5 with protection. It needs excellent drainage.

Lots of conflicting info online, thanks for the guidance I can trust. Now I wish I would have left it in the pot!

[estación seca]

That information is only for that hybrid. Most of the big commercial hybrids are only hardy to zone 9. I have seen people plant them out very deeply in protected spots, then mulch carefully.

There are Hippeastrum species still being discovered in South America.

[Dusty Ol' Man]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Nice! No outdoor amaryllis growing here! What's the groundcover that looks similar to liriope but has a different flower?

I don't know the name of it. It was already established when we bought the place. Her is a closer view.

[Clawhammer]

Dwarf Mexican Petunia

[estación seca]

The purple-flowered plant is a dwarf hybrid Ruellia, a genus in Melastomataceae. They are tender, hot growing plants that need a lot of sun. They would do really well for you in Kansas in a pot in the summer. Many of the hybrids are sterile. Some species and hybrids spread aggressively via underground rhizomes, but most hybrids are bred not to do that.

I could send seed of Ruellia capensis, a small and non-spreading Baja California shrub that does well here in gardens. It tolerates a few degrees of frost if in the ground. It will grow against a hot southern wall in our summers if watered. If you stop watering it drops its leaves until water returns. It flowers all year here. Flowers are the color of the dwarf in the photo, but smaller.

Of interest Ruellias have explosive seed pods. When watering you can hear the pops, and the seeds hit you in the face.

[WaterWitchin]

Well crap! I really like it. But just what I need, another plant that wouldn't tolerate being outside in a Kansas winter. Ugh. No wonder I didn't recognize it.

Thanks for the ID though. I'll admire from afar.