Have a blast… with the firework flower
The fancy agapanthus is guaranteed to put on a dazzling show until autumn and light up your beds in purples and blues
AFEW years ago, when I was making one of my regular appearances as a presenter on a shopping TV gardening show, I discovered that I’d be showing off an exciting new variety of African lily. Going by the name of Agapanthus ‘Fireworks’, it boasted rounded heads of trumpet-shaped, purple-blue and white flowers.
This newcomer’s unique, two-tone blooms had recently wowed Royal Horticultural Society judges, who a few months earlier, had awarded it a bronze medal in Chelsea Flower Show’s plant of the year contest.
As a result, it was a big hit with viewers and hundreds were snapped up during the four minutes it was on air.
I was equally enamoured with this stunner and returned home from the studio on that Sunday morning in 2019 clutching three small samples. Today, these plants have formed sizeable clumps of strap-shaped,
They’ll flower their socks off and are happy in just about any kind of soil
evergreen leaves that produce a steady flow of flowers on 2ft tall stalks, from late June until September.
Fireworks really is exceptional but there are hundreds of other agapanthus that will light up summer with spherical heads of bell, tubular or trumpet-shaped flowers in shades of purple, blue and white – displayed on stalks, ranging in height from 7in to 5ft, above evergreen, semi-evergreen or deciduous leaves.
Bare root plants are offered by mail order nurseries for planting in spring, yet that doesn’t mean anyone wishing to grow these architectural perennials has to miss out. In summer, many nurseries and garden centres stock plants in a range of pot sizes, with some offering mature specimens that will provide instant impact.
They’ll flower their socks off in a sunny, sheltered spot and are happy in just about any kind of soil, as long as it’s free-draining. Another option is to grow compact, slowspreading types in large containers filled with loam-based John Innes No.3 compost, improved with a handful of horticultural grit.
We’ve been growing agapanthus since the late 17th Century, when the first wild species arrived from Southern Africa. The plants are native to countries like South Africa, Mozambique, Lesotho and Eswatini, with its geographical origins giving rise to their common names of African lily and lily of the Nile. Up until the 1950s, wild agapanthus enjoyed cult status among adventurous sorts, but that all changed with the introduction of the ‘Headbourne Hybrids’ bred by horticulturalist Lewis Palmer. Possessing tall stems and large flower heads in shades of blue, these cultivated forms were a smash hit with the nation’s gardeners.
Today, there are close to 700 different agapanthus available from nurseries in the UK. Apart from impressing in summer, many of them will continue to add sculptural interest during the colder months of the year thanks to their long-lasting seed heads – these can also be cut, dried and used for winter decoration indoors.
Taller ones are great set in the middle of beds and borders, while more compact forms are best at the front of displays or planted along paths.
Agapanthus are a must-have for anyone wanting to create a Mediterranean-style arrangement and some varieties are so drought tolerant that they’ll succeed in gravel gardens.
Compact forms will thrive in containers. An individual specimen in a fancy pot will make a great focal point and a pair put either side of a doorway will add a stylish touch.
They really are versatile – I’ve been to gardens where pots have been placed on the treads of steps, spaced along walls or flank a rill or similar geometric water feature.
In terms of hardiness, evergreen varieties are more tender than deciduous types, which can take a cold snap down to minus 10C. My advice for those in colder parts is to raise plants in pots, moving them to a frost-free place in autumn. Insulate plants in the ground with a 3in deep layer of composted bark or garden compost.