Again this year at the end of August I brought them in. The Amaryllis. I had purchased them last year in December at artCentral’s Holiday Boutique. After enjoying their blooming indoors through the holidays and into spring, I put them outside in a semi-sunny corner of the herb garden. When I lifted their pots out of their summer home, I pruned back their leaves and my husband carried them down to the basement. Tucked against the stone foundation and covered with a colorful, old serape, they have rested in dormancy for the last two months.
Now is the time to bring last year’s Amaryllis upstairs to sit beside a sunny window, to freshen their home with a new blanket of Spanish moss and to start their watering. I will buy and bring home a new artCentral Amaryllis or two to join last year’s. Before we are even ready to open our presents, they will all be blooming.
When did I start celebrating the holidays with scarlet Amaryllis? So long ago I cannot remember. I had them in University Park in Dallas and in NYC walkups in Chelsea and Greenwich Village and Carroll Gardens; in my remote wilderness rental beside the Little Buffalo River and as the resident artist/gardener on a large private property on top of Mount Sequoyah in the Ozark Highlands of Fayetteville, Arkansas. I had them in my wee Forest Street Cottage when I first came to Carthage, and now David and I share them in our big, old house we love to call Paradise.
The dramatic beauty of scarlet Amaryllis will fill and brighten any home, modest or grand, with winter radiance and good cheer. I can’t imagine the holidays without them! Thankfully, artCentral, now through December 4, is again offering elegantly stunning scarlet Amaryllis bulbs cultivated to bloom through the holidays. They are presented this year in festive crimson planters bedecked with forest green bows. Modestly priced at $25.00 each, they are perfect for decorating homes and gift giving for your family and friends and business colleagues, too. You may want to purchase more than one.
This year’s Amaryllis edition is limited, so put your order in soon at (417) 358-4404 or [email protected]. All proceeds are dedicated to artCentral’s work on behalf of the art and artists that enrich the cultural life of Carthage and our neighboring communities.
The genus name “Amaryllis” comes from the Greek word “amarysso”—an ancient female name that means “sparkling” or “to sparkle”. Greek mythology tells us that Amaryllis was a shepherdess who loved Alteo, a strong and handsome shepherd. He had a passion for flowers.
Looking into the symbolism of the Amaryllis we learn this flower signifies pastoral poetry as well as determination, exquisite beauty and pride.
During the 18th century, Amaryllis bulbs were labeled as lilies. Amaryllis in South Africa is the March lily; the belladonna or Jersey lily in the United Kingdom; and the Madonna lily in Italy. The Portuguese name for the Amaryllis means “St. Joseph’s Staff” in reference to the legend that the staff of St. Joseph burst into bloom as a sign of his selection as the spouse of the Virgin Mary.
The Amaryllis is said to be native to tropical regions of the Caribbean, Mexico and Cape Province in South Africa. Some botanists believe that Portuguese explorers probably first brought the Amaryllis bulb to Europe around the early 16th century. Today Holland is a major grower and exporter of the festively colored Amaryllis. The Amaryllis bulbs that are shipped to artCentral are from Amsterdam.
Shop local! Order your artCentral Amaryllis early, and before we begin our seasonal twirl, be sure to pause and give yourself a pre-holiday treat! Through December 4, visit Hyde House at 1110 East Thirteenth in Carthage and see how artCentral is celebrating this inspiring season with the gracious support of Sharon and Lance Beshore and Old Missouri Bank. Bid on and buy your favorite SMALL WORKS|GREAT WONDERS. Spend time with “p-i-e-c-e-d TOGETHER”—the extraordinary mixed media exhibition by Lori Marble and Jo Mueller. Weekend Gallery Hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m. with CDC protocols practiced at artCentral. For more information call (417) 358-4404 and visit www.artcentralcarthage.org.
