Amarylis/Hippeastrum

I have an amyrilis coming into growth for the third year. It has half a dozen strong leaves with a baby at the side. My plan was to repot the bulb, removing the baby and tucking it into the side of the mother bulb's pot, but then began thinking. Dangerous! When purchased for Christmas flowering, the leaves have usually been cut off. Is this purely for ease of packaging into small boxes and pots or to promote flowers. Mine came into flower very early last year, no leaves were removed, my preferred method, would it help the bulb if I cut down the foliage? Mine does grow rather large, long leaves.
The bulb was given to me as a bright red, wax covered bulb, to be grown without soil, I couldn't do that so peeled the wax off and potted it up. It had two flower stems its first year and again last year so I must be doing something right.

 

I don't cut the foliage down, plants need it to feed the bulb. When autumn/winter comes with the lower temperatures my plants get less water (staying indoors on the windowsill) and leaves dry one after another. Bulbs go dormant till flowering.

 

Mine will be dried off soon ready for overwinter storage.
I always flower these during the summer, flowering them indoors in mid winter is not part of the natural cycle.
Although I know a lot are sold with that in mind it's basically just forcing them into flower,they often get long and leggy as well.

 

Mine flowered of its own accord last year in Oct., which I assumed was their natural flowering time, along with the rest of the autumn flowering nerines, hippeastrum, etc. I put my current bulb outside, in its pot, at the beginning of the summer so it has had a good bake and rest, as it has come into leaf I am going to pot it on with a good feed and bring it indoors when the temps. get a bit lower.

 

You obviously have the knack @Goldenlily26 ! I frequently forget to dry bulbs off, so I get lots of foliage and no flowers.

 

I think they are the kind of bulb that will flower at any time of the year if you start watering after a dry spell.

I have grown them from seed and the advice was to keep them green until they have their first flowering after which you can sort out a flowering period and a drying off period.
I just find it easier to put the dry pot on the corner of the greenhouse for the winter, mine are in a bucket and it's not good as a Christmas table decoration.