Potted Agapanthus Production
Today’s Pro Platform tutorial is about our agapanthus propagation and production as a cut flower and potted plant.
About Agapanthus
Agapanthus are native to South Africa and after being moved to different scientific classes, they have been classed as their own family. Varieties that are also classes as A. africanus and A. praecox are more hardy “evergreen” varieties, but neither of these can survive on our farm in zone 4-5. Many agapanthus hybrids are perennial in zones 6-11. But there is some variation in hardiness, so you should look into the specific kinds that are available to you if you are hoping to overwinter them outside year-round. You’ll find agapanthus in landscaping applications in southern California.
Our agapanthus were a gift from a regional hobby breeder. I’m not sure of it’s parentage. Our plants start blooming mid June (with the help of warming up in our greenhouse) and they quickly sprout about 6-10 stems and more appear over a long growing period. The stem count is higher as the plants mature. A large agapanthus plant can yield 40-80 stems per season.
Pests & Disease:
Agapanthus are resistant to disease and pests like insects and even deer! They do not attract aphids, tarnished plant bug, japanese beetles, or any other problematic pests that we can note on our farm.
Because they prefer a drier, climate, they can be prone to root-rot. This is another reason why they perform so well as potted plants for us. Agapanthus would not do well in our heavy clay soil, in addition to struggling with our winter temperatures.
Value as Cut Flower:
Agapanthus is sold in the US floral industry for about $15 per 5-stem bunch. I’ve seen up to $48 per 10-stem bunch on retail websites. It is not currently listed on the Boston Terminal price sheet (as I write this), but perhaps when you’re reading you can find it. Web search for: Boston Terminal Flower Prices.
That’s conservatively about $192 per 10-stem retail bunch per season (if there are 40 stems per plant). Or- we can offer mature potted plants for $50+ in retail plant sales.
They bloom on sturdy, tall, tubular stems. And work well in just about any application we can think of. From large designs and displays to market and wedding bouquets. Snip off individual florets for use in boutonnieres, corsages, or flower crowns.
Vase Life:
Agapanthus have a great vase life of up to 2 weeks. 10 days is more realistic in our experience.
Potted Plant Production:
To conserve valuable growing space, begin with a pot size that fits your plant and then bump it up to a larger size. We grow ours in 7-gallon nursery pots. (These are same pots we use for lilies, dahlias, and eucalyptus.) We use a clean, sterile growing medium (like ProMix) to host our agapanthus. The crown of the plant should be at the soil surface. They do not need to planted deeply. Each spring, we give our large, 7-gallon plants, 2 teaspoons of slow-release fertilizer to help them feed through the season. Giving agapanthus too much fertilizer can result in leggy growth. So that’s why we use a slow release formula. Agapanthus perform well in full sun.
Agapanthus Division and Winter Care:
Divide your agapanthus after flowering. We let the foliage die back and let the plant go dormant and make our division in the winter time when we have time to do it. Agapanthus like to dry out in the winter time, so we let them slow down and trim off the dead foliage. We tuck them under our greenhouse benches and we don’t water them. (The prefer to dry out in the winter time.)
To divide agapanthus, use a sharp knife and cut the plant into halves or quarters vertically so each piece has some crown. We use a serated bread knife and “saw” down through the plant. Depending on the size of the division, you may not see many flowers the following growing season. The larger the plant, the more flowers. Once you have a number of agapanthus plants you can start a system or cycle of dividing so that you’re not dividing every plant, every season.
Propagation by seed:
You can also propagate agapanthus from seed. It can take 2-3 years to achieve the first flower, but if you can tolerate the slow game and/or want to cross different varieties and make your own hybrids, that’s how you’ll do it.
Harvest the seed pods in late summer/fall. The pods will turn brown and start to burst. If you have an indoor growing space with strong lights, you can plant up your seeds and get them started during the winter time. Cover the seeds with about a 1/4 inch of soil mix, water them, and keep them in a room temp, sunny or well-light space (like a grow room or on seed-starting sheles). Germination take about a month. After germination, move them to a cool bright place. When they reach about a centimeter tall, you can pluck them out and pot them up into larger pots.
Getting Started:
If you are a smaller grower and you are curious about agapanthus AND not in a tremendous hurry to have a lot of plants either due to the space available to you or because you don’t want to invest in a large collection for whatever reason— start with one retail plant ordered in, or a potted plant from a nursery.
We recommend:
‘Alba’ (a white variety)
‘Elaine’ (deep blue)
‘Summer Gold’ (periwinkle blue)
There are many different kinds of agapanthus. When shopping, be sure to avoid the “dwarf” varieties with short stem lengths. The ‘Headbourne Hybrids’ are a little more cold hardy (USDA zones 6-9)
You may be able to find agapanthus plants from a wholesale perennial supplier, however they may only offer very small divisions (that when grouped together equal the cost of a large potted plant). Wholesale agapanthus plants typically ship in the late winter or spring.
It may be worth looking into beginning with more mature plants if you want to have a significant number of flowers your very first season. Then you get the advantage of a season of established flowering from them, and can divided some in the winter and let others grow on.