Amaryllis 
Hybrid Amaryllis, which have been one of our favorite growing and exhibition 
lines for many years, as our show records before World War II, recorded in back 
numbers of “‘Herbertia,” will indicate, have a long history, going back to the late 
18th century and Amaryllis Johnsonii, which was raised in a Lancashire garden in 
England as a cross between Am. reginae and A. vittata. Dean William Herbert says 
in his ‘‘Amaryllidaceae’”’ that Johnson, a watchmaker, produced his pioneer hybrid in 
1810, while J. G. Baker, the other 19th century monographer of the ‘““Amaryllideae”’ 
gives the date as 1799. 
From Johnsonii to the current gorgeous hybrids of the Netherlands, England and 
America, is a story of steady progress and the development of many strains, forms and 
colors. The plant explorers found dozens of species of Amaryllis, and the great 
period of development came in Europe during the last half of the 19th century. 
The introduction of such outstanding species as Am. Leopoldi by Robert Pearce in the 
60’s for the House of Veitch, famous English horticultural firm, is described by his- 
torians of the plant as one of the high points in early hybrid Amaryllis breeding, 
laying the foundations for later achievements. 
Amaryllis may be said to be a common flower in some places. Within a few 
miles of Lakemont Gardens there are literally acres and millions of the bulbs, (Mead 
Strain, after the late Theodore L. Mead of Oviedo, who first put this strain on the 
market). But to many millions of flower lovers in the north it is an unknown bulb 
beauty. Others have seen them in flower shows, in greenhouse collections or out- 
side in the Lower South and California. 
Pioneer breeding work in America on the Hybrid Amaryllis was done by the late 
Henry Nehrling, another trail-blazing Florida horticulturist. Mead obtained his first 
bulb, and subsequent pollen for hybridizing, from the Nehrling collection, then at 
Gotha, Fla. 
Our Amaryllis breeding efforts at Lakemont Gardens have been mainly directed 
toward producing a new strain of Amaryllis which would have superior quality of 
flowers, with excellent texture of petals, free flowering habit, and vigorous growth. 
This last is perhaps the most important factor lacking in the choice Hybrid Amaryllis 
available today in the trade, whether from Holland, England or Northern greenhouse 
collections. 
For this purpose we have been crossing the most vigorous types of the Mead 
Strain, those having a combination of good flowers and thrifty qualities of growth, 
with the best bulbs of California, Dutch and other growers. In the past 15 years 

HYBRID AMARYLLIS PURE WHITE HYBRID 
Ludwig strain 
