Growing up in Berkeley, California, we had a few clusters of Agapanthus on the side of the house that just bloomed year after year with seemingly very little care. Today, as a garden and flower lover I appreciate agapanthus even more, and was so thrilled to see it in bloom at the beginning of August in Oakland, California, and specifically the Cleveland Heights/Haddon Hill area. Like many of my favorite plants, Agapanthus is a native of South Africa, and thus sometimes called lily of the Nile, or African lily in the UK. However, they are not lilies and all of the species are native to Southern Africa (South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique), though some have become naturalized in scattered places around the world such as Australia, Great Britain, Mexico, Ethiopia, and Jamaica
Agapanthus is a genus of herbaceous perennials that mostly bloom in summer. This leads to the Australian common name, Star of Bethlehem, as it blooms just before Xmas during their summer. The leaves are basal, curved, and linear, growing up to 60 cm (24 in) long. They are rather leathery and arranged in two opposite rows. The plant has a mostly underground stem called a rhizome (like a ginger 'root') that is used as a storage organ. The roots, which grow out of the rhizome, are white, thick and fleshy.
The inflorescence is a pseudo-umbel at the apex of a long, erect scape, up to 2 m (6.6 ft) tall. They have funnel-shaped or tubular flowers,in hues of blue to purple, shading to white. Some hybrids and cultivars have colors not found in wild plants which includes bi-colored blue/lavender and white flowers flushed with pink as the blooms mature.
Agapanthus praecox can be grown within USDA plant hardiness zones 9 to 11. In lower-numbered zones, the rhizomes should be placed deeper in the soil and mulched well in the fall. Summer water should be provided. Agapanthus can be propagated by dividing clumps or by seeds.
Several hundred cultivars and hybrids are cultivated as garden and landscape plants. Several are winter-hardy to USDA Zone 7, which contains southern Oklahoma, a chunk of northern Texas, southern New Mexico, central Arizona, southern Utah and southern and western areas of Nevada. The zone extends into eastern California and west-central Oregon/Washington.
Agapanthus is so perfect to fill a strip of garden between two yards, or to line a walkway. And it looks great even when not in bloom.
Are you sold? I'm not sure I could grow Agapanthus in my sub-tropical zone 6/7 Northern Israel area, but I think I need to look into it.....I could always take some pots indoors come winter?
