Agapanthus are popular summer flowering garden plants with star-burst flowerheads in white to the darkest blue. They are well suited to warmer UK gardens and grow well in borders and containers. They come from South Africa originally and have naturalised in some parts of the UK, most particularly in the Isles of Scilly. Most of us buy our Agapanthus as plants, but they can be raised from seed, with a little patience. I collected seed today from one my dwarf Agapanthus and will sow them this autumn.
  
Autumn seedheads................................seeds.........................seedlings
(two months later)
Agapanthus seedheads mature in autumn when
the seeds can be collected for sowing. This is typically October/November
in Cornwall, but watch your plants to see the pods ripening from green to pale
brown and then starting to open. The seeds are black and 'papery' in
nature and quite delicate, so be careful when handling them. The seeds do
not store that long, so sow immediately in autumn or keep them in a dry sealed
container in a fridge and sow the seeds the following spring. Keep sown
seeds at a cool 15-18 degrees Celsius and they germinate in 4-6 weeks.
  
Codd's Agapanthus Drooping Agapanthus Agapanthus 'Adelaide'
The seedlings take a white to get established, and
will grow into clumps that generally start to flower in the third season.
They are worth the wait, as Agapanthus plants hybridise easily with one
another and you may get the occasional unexpected plants with a new flower
colour or form. Plants generally flower from June to August, but they do vary
depending on the species and varities. Good plants to try from seed include
Codd's Agapanthus, a hardy deciduous form, growing up to 1m high, wth pale blue
and striped flowers, the Drooping Agapanthus, another deciduous plant, with
bright blue flowers, up to 120cm high, and Agapanthus 'Adelaide', a hardy
evergreen dwarf plant with masses of pale blue flowers up to 80cm in height.
JaneVoisey
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