The Safer Choice of Agapanthus
Queen Mum and Cloudy Days
Not only a safer choice, but a more beautiful ornamental choice
Queen Mum and Cloudy Days have a lower seed viability compared to the common Agapanthus.
Agapanthus are world favourites for their striking starbursts of blue or white mid-summer blooms. Unfortunately, misunderstandings about these plants abound.
In general, Agapanthus of all types are a safe plant. However, there is some controversy in a few regions of Australia regarding the non-hybridised forms of Agapanthus. These appear to have become naturalised in small pockets in NSW and Victoria and their presence is caused by the dumping of garden waste. Agapanthus seem to not be causing prominent competition for natives as they flower poorly in shady areas. In most regions of Australia they will never cause a problem.
As Ozbreed and other environmentally aware organisations prefer to play it safe, there are a few things that you can do to make sure your Agapanthus never causes problems:
- Use safer varieties such as Queen Mum and Cloudy Days
- If you live near bush land, cut off and dispose of spent flower heads correctly. This is recommended anyway, as the next year the Agapanthus will flower much better if the spent flower heads are removed quickly. In fact, by removing Queen Mum and Cloudy Days spent flower heads soon after they finish flowering, our research has shown you get 20% more flowers next year.
- Never dump garden waste of any type near bushland.
Queen Mum and Cloudy Days are the more environmentally friendly choice in Agapanthus with low seed set and multiplication rates when compared with non-hybridised forms.