=A. h. atropurpureus= (dark purple).* An improved variety of above.
=A. melancholicus ruber= (melancholy-red).* _h._ about 1ft. Japan. A compact growing variety, with large shaded crimson leaves. Largely used for bedding purposes.
=A. salicifolius= (willow-leaved).* _l._ 7in. to 15in. long, willow-shaped, linear, and wavy, which, by their drooping outline, present a very elegant and effective appearance. When fully grown, the leaves are brilliantly banded and tipped with orange, carmine, and bronze. _h._ 3ft. Philippine Isles, 1871.
=A. s. Princess of Wales.=* _l._ carmine, orange green, and bright yellow, beautifully blended. _h._ 3ft. A garden hybrid.
=A. sanguineus= (bloody). _fl._ purple, disposed partly in small heads in the axils of the upper leaves, and partly in slender, flexible spikes, which form a more or less branching panicle. July. _l._ blood red. _h._ 3ft. Bahama, 1775.
[Illustration: FIG. 74. AMARANTHUS TRICOLOR.]
=A. speciosus= (showy).* _fl._ dark crimson purple, disposed in large erect spikes, forming a fine plumy panicle. July. _l._ suffused with a reddish tinge, which disappears at the time of flowering. _h._ 3ft. to 5ft. Nepaul, 1819.
=A. s. aureus= (golden). _fl._ of a fine brownish-golden hue. Very effective when grown in masses.
=A. tricolor= (three-coloured).* _l._ of a fine, transparent, purplish-red or dark carmine from the base to the middle; a large spot of bright yellow occupies the greater part of the upper end of the leaf; point generally green; leafstalks yellow. _h._ 1-1/2ft. East Indies, 1548. See Fig. 74. There are several garden varieties of this species, requiring a somewhat warmer situation.
=AMARYLLIDEÃ.= A large and important order of usually bulbous plants, sometimes with a stem. Flowers solitary, umbellate, or paniculate; perianth superior, six-lobed, often with a corona at the top of the tube. Leaves ensiform or linear. This order contains many very beautiful genera, including _Agave_, _Amaryllis_, _Crinum_, _Hæmanthus_, _Hippeastrum_, _Narcissus_, _Pancratium_, and several others.
=AMARYLLIS= (from _Amaryllis_, the name of a country-woman mentioned by Theocritus and Virgil). ORD. _Amaryllideæ_. Half-hardy or hardy, deciduous, bulbous plants. Flowers large, sweet-scented, pedicelled; spathe two-leaved; umbels few-flowered; perianth with a very short tube, funnel-shaped, six-parted, sub-regular or irregular; segments many-nerved, broad, undulate, spreading somewhat at the apices; stamens at the summit of the tube, unequal, declined; anthers fixed by the middle, incumbent, curved into a circular arch after bursting; style declined; stigma thickened, sub-three-lobed; scape tall, solid, compressed. Capsule obovate; seeds globose, fleshy. Leaves appearing at a different season from the scapes, numerous, strap-shaped. The following genera are sometimes arranged hereunder, but in this work are treated separately: _Brunsvigia_, _Crinum_, _Hippeastrum_, _Nerine_, _Sprekelia_, _Sternbergia_, _Vallota_, _Zephyranthes_. Warm, dry, and well-drained positions in front of hothouses, or at the base of south or south-west walls, are the most suitable sites for _A. Belladonna_ and its varieties. The soil should be composed of good, fibrous loam, leaf mould, and sand, in equal parts. Insert the bulbs 6in. to 8in. deep, and surround with sand, after which they may be covered with the compost, which should be pressed firmly about them; they should not be again disturbed for years, when they will ultimately establish themselves, and produce grand masses of blossom. The best time to plant a fresh stock is June or July, when they commence root-action, before the flower-stems are sent up. In their growing season, and in dry weather, an occasional soaking of clear water, or liquid manure, will be greatly beneficial. The extremely ornamental plants now largely grown, and frequently classed as _Amaryllis_ in nurserymen's catalogues, belong to the genus _Hippeastrum_. For pot-culture of the Belladonna Lily, _see_ =Hippeastrum=.