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If you've ever visited California you've seen Agapanthus, or Lilly of the Nile all over
the side of the road, and they grow easily. They're a South African plant that has adjusted
well to changing its' environment. They're found all over the world and they're easy
to grow. I love to call them Aggies ***'s because I have nicknames for all of my bulbs.
But you can call them Lilly of the Nile or Agapanthus, or anything you want to call them
because they're a gorgeous South African plant that is easy to grow. This particular Agapanthus
is called Getty. It was actually hybridized in England from original stalk that was found
in South African. So its know has a Headbourne Hybrid, which it was hybridized at a castle
in England at the Headbourne Castle. Because the stalk is originally from South Africa
and it has been crossed many times, I still consider it a South African plant. An Agapanthus
is just a root with an eye, so I just cover it about three inches deep in full hot sun.
Any they've got to be root bound to bloom, so my trick is to plant like two or three
bulbs together at one time, so they're just a mound of root, you want those roots to be
crowded. So the more the merrier. Whenever I'm planting Agapanthus, I want to crowd them,
because you want them to bloom. And if you put one by itself you might not get blooms
for a couple of years, but you put three or four together and you should get blooms that
first summer in full hot sun. Beside white, there's another popular one called Pinocchio
or sometimes a similar one is called Peter Pan and it's a shorter variety Agapanthus,
so it's only one to two feet tall. And it is a dark dark blue, as opposed to others
that are a lighter color. And again, it's just a root, and you just cover the root about
three inches deep in full hot sun. They've got to have that hot sun all day to do well.
And good drainage. They don't want to sit in water. In the Northwest, I've gotten them
to grow for about 15 years now. And they are in a raised bed, with good drainage in full
hot sun and I never lose them. Because once their roots are established they do well.
You just don't want to put them in a pot and have that pot freeze solid in the winter,
sometimes you'll lose them, so throw the pot in the garage to be safe. Besides the whites
and the dark blues one of the most popular is the Donau. And it's a lighter blue and
it?s a large it gets two, three, four feet tall with big blue blooms. And I just love
them, all my Agapanthus. Because hummingbirds love them too, all the colors. They're so
easy to grow; you just plant them and forget them. They are drought tolerant, they do like
water in the summer, but even if you never take care of them, they'll come back for years
to come. A great South African plant. Next we'll talk about Red Hot Pokers from South
Africa.