Agapanthus

[Hamad]

Botanical Name	Agapanthus
Family	Amaryllidaceae
Genus	Agapanthus
Specie	Around 10 species
Local Name in Urdu	N/A
Common Name	African Lily, lily of the Nile
Life Cycle	Perennial
Cultivar Name	N/A
Category(Bulb/Corm/Tuber/Rhizome/root)	fleshy roots, few also consider as Rhizomes as they have a Rhizome in between fleshy roots
Hardiness	Hardy with mulch, depend on the type deciduous stand cold better than the evergreen, evergreen variety could be shifted indoors in cold
Hardiness Zone	zone 09 to 11
Soil PH	6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
Planting Time	year-round depend on the variety, evergreen could be planted year round but for deciduous its better to plant in late Autumn and early spring
Planting Depth	2 inch deep
Spacing	Their spread is 1 to 2 feet, and they like to grow in clumps, recommended spacing is 18 to 24 inches when planting in beds
Height	2 to 4 feet
Exposure	Full am sun to partial pm sun
Flowering Time	Summer
Flower Color	Blue, Purple, white and Pink
Fragrant	No
Uses	Use as a cut flower for beautiful indoor display
Propagation	By dividing offsets after flowering and by sowing seeds
Difficulty(Easy/Intermediate/Hard )	Easy to grow but difficult to bloom
Suitable for (KHI/LHR/RWL/ISL/PWR/High Lands)	Suitable for most areas but could face difficulties for cold areas of Pakistan
Tips to grow	Agapanthus are herbaceous perennials originating from southern Africa, both deciduous and evergreen , some have thick, strappy leaves other grass like foliage and they range from fully hardy to semi hardy, with the evergreen verities generally the most tender Agapanthus thrives in fertile, well drained, but moisture retentive soil in full sun, plant crowns in spring, 15cm (2inch) below the ground and avoid planting in shade, as plants will either grow poorly or develop a mass lush foliage at the expanse of flowers. Both deciduous plants and the more tender varieties with evergreen leaves are best protected over winter with a dry mulch of sand or straw, apply a 15-22cm (6-9inch) deep layer around plants in autumn or early winter and remove in spring before growth starts, a few layers of horticultural fleece can also be thrown over the leaves of the evergreen varieties. For the flower displays, feed weekly or fortnightly with a balance liquid feed during the growing season until flowers begin to show colour, water agapanthus plants regularly during the growing season, but only sparingly in winter. Divide plants after flowering, avoid dividing plants too often as they forming large clumps, divide them after every 4 to 6 years, agapanthus could also be propagated by seeds collect the pods as they turn brown in autumn and allow them to split indoors, store in cool and dry place and sow them in spring
Other Details	The name Agapanthus is derived from the Greek agape, meaning love, and anthos, meaning flower; thus, Agapanthus is sometimes called “Love Flower.” Although Agapanthus is originally from South Africa, the fact that it is sometimes called “Lily of the Nile” suggests that Agapanthus was traded beyond its original territory. It is also called “African Lily.” Agapanthus have few problems, frost damage is common issue in cold winter, even for more hardy types a poor display of flowers and pale streaks on the leaves can be result or virus and plant that have these symptoms are often best replaced. Agapanthus can be shy to flower if subjected to drought condition following flowering, to ensure a good display next year, keep plants moist until autumn after flowers starts to fade, which will encourage the development the new flower buds. There is a common misconception that agapanthus flower better when pot-bound, although they like to be cosy in pots, flowering poorly when over-potted or over-divided, they also flower poorly when excessively pot-bounded, try re-potting plus watering and feeding in spring, to improve flowering. Too much shade, cold weather and lack of winter protection are also common reasons for agapanthus to fail to flower.

[Hamad]

References for above entry: Royal Horticulture Society, Dave's Garden, Uni of NC United Stated Horticulture department.
also please refer to the following website for more information http://www.agapanthus.info/ the details that I have provided may differ a little as I haven't use the details from this site because this site itself is a detailed information on Agapanthus.

I would like to ask my fellow members to share their experience if someone have had experienced this plant and if they could provide me with a photo to complete this entry.

Hamad

[Izhar]

Agapanthus white 2 year old seedlings:

[Izhar]

7 months old seedlings of Agapanthus white:

[Muhammad Arif Khan]

A common feature of land scape in south USA.
Mostly blue

[khabbab]

"Suitable for most areas"

Hamad, what is the source of this information?

[khabbab]

Apart from few individuals (including Khalid kadeer from model town), it is a difficult to grow plant in lahore and maybe karachi. Suitable for temperate climates like Islamabad.

Perhaps it is time to introduce a new field in Flora database like "Suitable for novice: Yes/No".

[Izhar]

This summer i may order few matured agapanthus as these which i have been growing from seeds are now growing without any problem......... and blooms....

[UMARKHANMARDAN]

Agapanthus does not flower at Islamabad.I have seen its beauty at Nathia gali. What a specticuler display.Izhar the one i saw was blue. I have never seen White.

[khabbab]

This summer i may order few matured agapanthus as these which i have been growing from seeds are now growing without any problem......... and blooms....

Do share the blooms!!!!