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Agapanthus africanus
Also called African Lily, Blue Lily, Blue Agapanthus, Agapanthus, Cape Bluelily, Dwarf Agapanthus, Fynbos Agapanthus
Agapanthus africanus is a rhizomatous evergreen perennial from the winter rainfall fynbos of South Africa's Cape region, grown mainly as a rockery or container plant. It is much harder to grow than the common garden agapanthus (A. praecox), so it needs very good drainage, hot dry summers and little summer water.
Agapanthus africanus, commonly named the African lily, is a flowering plant from the genus Agapanthus found only on rocky sandstone slopes of the winter rainfall fynbos from the Cape Peninsula to Swellendam. It is also called the lily of the Nile in spite of only growing in South Africa.
Unlike the more common Agapanthus praecox, this species is less suitable as a garden plant as it is far more difficult to grow. A. africanus subsp. africanus may be grown in rockeries in a well drained, slightly acid sandy mix. They seem to be best when grown in shallow pots and will flower regularly if fed with a slow release fertiliser. A. africanus subsp. walshii is by far the most difficult Agapanthus to grow. It can only be grown as a container plant and will not survive if planted out. They require a very well-drained, sandy, acid mix with minimal watering in summer. Both subspecies require hot, dry summers, and winter rainfall climate. It will not tolerate extended freezing temperatures.
The name A. africanus has long been misapplied to A. praecox in horticultural use and publications across the world, and horticultural plants sold as A. africanus are actually hybrids or cultivars of A. praecox.
Pollination is by wind, bees and sunbirds and seed dispersal by the wind. Chacma baboons and buck sometimes eat the flower heads just as the first flowers begin to open. These plants are adapted to survive fire in the fynbos and resprout from thick, fleshy roots after fire has passed through the area.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Agapanthus africanus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
