Amaryllis, or hippeastrum, as it is also called, is a very popular house plant, with huge, vividly coloured flowers.

There’s always a bit of confusion about the name. Amaryllis used to be the correct name, and then it was changed to hippeastrum, while amaryllis stayed on as the name of another beautiful flower, an outdoor relative of the hippeastrum.

While the true amaryllis, native of South Africa, is reasonably hardy, the hippeastrum is not. Not all that surprising really, as hippeastrum is native to tropical parts of South America.

And it looks exotic. The flowers are large trumpets, flaring open at the mouth, the petals rolling back and stamens arching forward.

Such a large flower needs a large bulb to support it, and the bulbs can be the size of a large grapefruit.

The plant is often bought as a bulb in a box with compost, pot and instructions, and it is also sold in growth, even in flower, and as a popular cut-flower. It is usually in shops from autumn to early spring.

If it is bought as a kit, simply pot it up and give it a good soaking and let it drain fully. Then place it in a warm room to trigger growth and, in a few weeks, the tip of the flower spike appears, usually ahead of the leaves.

Depending on the warmth, watering and the readiness of the bulb to flower, the flower stem grows rapidly, sometimes to over 60cm. It is a bit of fun to watch it go.

If the flower stalk tends to lean towards the light, turn the pot every week to keep it straight or give better light. It usually takes six to eight weeks to flower.

Sometimes the larger bulbs cost a little more and these usually have a larger head of trumpet flowers, and quite often two flowering stems, so they are worth the extra expense.

The colours are usually shades of red, pink or white, some kinds being two-toned or a light shade flushed with darker red or pink. ‘Belinda’ is a dark crimson colour; ‘Red Lion’ is scarlet red. ‘Star of Holland’ is red with white markings. ‘Orange Sovereign’ is orange and ‘Mont Blanc’ is white. One of the most popular two-tones is ‘Apple Blossom’, white with a lovely flush of pink on the petals.

By the time flowering has finished, the leaves will usually be about half their final length of forty centimetres or so. After flowering, the flower stem can be cut away, or allowed to wither back. The bulb shrinks dramatically after the effort of making the large flower stem.

The exhausted bulb slowly builds back to flowering strength again, and the late spring and summer immediately after flowering is the important time for feeding and watering to ensure flowering the following year.

The plant should be placed in a bright sunny window, watered to keep it nicely moist and given dilute liquid feed every second week.

The large leaves, when well fed, soon bulk up the bulb and a flower bud will be developed by the end of summer. Usually by early autumn, the bottom leaves begin to turn yellow.

Stop feeding and gradually reduce watering, eventually withholding water altogether and then the rest of the leaves yellow and finally wither. The withered leaves can be removed and the bulb kept dry in its pot for a few weeks until mid-winter or early spring. To re-start the bulb, just water heavily once and keep the pot in a warm place.

Offset bulbs often appear on established plants and can be separated after a year or so and potted up to grow on to flowering size.

Control perennial weeds in flower beds

Perennial weeds such as docks, buttercups and dandelions can be controlled by digging out or treating with a glyphosate-based spray before the growing season gets underway. The alternative of covering with black plastic is usually not possible in the small spaces of a flower bed or border. Some perennial weeds, such as nettles and scotch grass, are hardly visible in early spring, and bindweed is not visible at all, but these can be let grow and tackled later in spring. It is often necessary to make two efforts to clear dandelions and docks, especially if they are dug out, because they can recover from tap-root pieces left behind.

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Trees, shrubs and roses

Rose bushes and repeat-flowering climbers should be pruned as soon as possible and certainly in the next few weeks. Pruning late tends to delay flowering in summer. Plant trees and shrubs only if soil conditions are good and soil is not sticky, otherwise wait a while.

Fruit, vegetables and herbs

Soil conditions have been wet. Plant fruit trees and bushes as soon as ground conditions allow. Potatoes can be sprouted in shallow trays in a bright place. Sow seeds of early varieties of cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, lettuce and onions under cover to get a head-start.

Lawn

Lawns have been wet and squelchy and should not be walked upon until they have drained. If a dry spell comes along, and the ground firms up, mow the grass. Areas of wildflower meadow or wildflower lawn can be mown once or twice to tighten the sward before spring.

Flowers

Seeds of geraniums, lobelia, busy lizzie and bedding begonias can be sown in a heated propagator, but it is still too early for most kinds, such as dahlias and French marigolds. Begonia and gloxinia tubers can be started in a greenhouse or windowsill indoors.

Greenhouse and house plants

It is important to begin watering, as greenhouse plants need it, but without over-doing the amount of water. Check for pests too, and treat them if necessary. If the glass is dirty, it can be cleaned to allow more light in. Be careful cleaning glass and also polythene covers.