Talkback: Agapanthus - Page 2 - Talkback

12/10/2009 at 12:34

I split an agapanthus that was in the group - planted 4yrs ago- flowered once - then last year i removed it and split it into 3 pots with john innes no 3 - what an amazing thing happened I got 8 flower heads!! Once they have flowered what do you do with the seeds and the stem? do you cut them?

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19/10/2009 at 12:27

Reply to Naz: As with any plant that starts forming seed heads, if you don't want to collect seed then dead head and remove old seed heads immediately. These seed heads can look quite attractive on agapanthus, but remember that plants use a lot of energy forming seeds, which is a waste if all you're going to do is cut them off!

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25/10/2009 at 15:31

Hi I have just been given 6 bits of agapanthus root and shoot. They have a bit of tuber quite a few roots and some top green shoots which have been trimmed down. What is the best way for me to get them planted and survive the winter so that i get some growth next year. I was going to put them all together in a pot with some potting compost and soil mix, do they need free drainage?

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30/01/2010 at 20:26

My agapanthus look very sick I split them a few years ago (they are in ground)and they dont flower as much say half as much now They have white powder stuff on some of them and there leaves look deformed What should I feed them as before I didnt think they needed anything so I just left them and they were doing great until I split them. Should I pull them out and start again with new ones. thanks maxy

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01/02/2010 at 10:21

Reply to Maxy: As you don't say where you live, Maxy, it's hard offering advice. Suffice to say there was another frost in teh Midlands where I live last night, and I wouldn't be expecting any agapanthus to be 'looking good' at this time of year. My pot-grown plants have completely died down for winter, and probably won't be showing signs of new leaf growth again until later in March or April. Be patient, and see what new growth develops. REmember that agapanthus usually like being reasonably pot bound, so don't lift and divide too frequently.

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05/02/2010 at 13:34

Hello i've inherited a garden full of agapanthus, and all the leaves are still there from last year. they look a bit sorry for themselves now, a bit yellow and soggy. Should i leave them on or cut them off at some point? Thanks

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08/02/2010 at 14:12

Reply to Natalie: Agapanthus foliage can remain evergreen, but if it is turning yellow and soggy then cut away at its base (just above the top of the plant). New leaves will emerge in spring.

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10/02/2010 at 21:55

I have just acquired alot of chopped off bits of agapanthus rhyzome (?) with roots coming off them - my feeling is to stuff quite a few together in a pot + well draining compost and hope that there will be some flowers this year? What do you think.

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15/03/2010 at 14:15

Can any one tell me if I need to remove the leaves from my Agapanthus once they have stopped flowering?

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22/03/2010 at 10:29

Reply to Marie Lily: I would not cut off leaves after flowering in autumn. However, my potted plants have been kept in the greenhouse over winter, and some die back completely. All this old foliage and flower stalks can be cut away. I tend to leave green foliage in place provided it is healthy. You can cut it all back, and new leaves will form, but I trend to think that if a green leaf is present then it is doing a job, so leave in place.

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12/04/2010 at 09:59

Thanks to Adam and the other contributors on this discussion for all this valuable information. I had a fabulous agapanthus as a gift about six years ago which we put in a large terracotta pot, which we moved to next to the kitchen wall and covered each winter. Every winter except this last one, unfortunately! After six wonderful years, the poor thing was well and truly dead, and we spent an hour and a half yesterday hacking out all the roots, it looked like a huge pot of spaghetti! Like you say, where does the compost go?? I felt that we'd been quite wicked so it is good to hear they like to be pot bound. We have bought another one, 'Donau', and hope to have the same success with this one, which we promise to look after. Thanks for the advice about the dead leaves, I was never sure what I should do with them.

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25/04/2010 at 18:48

I have had my beautiful agapanthus in it's current pot for about the past 5 years - last year it didn't flower as well as usual - perhaps only 6 heads instead of the usual 8 or 9. I guess it's time to re-pot. However, my real concern is that I cut all the leaves back last autumn, and covered it to protect it from the frost. Having uncovered it a couple of weeks ago, I'm surprised that there is no re-growth happening at all yet. I pulled out one of the tubors as they seemed empty and dead - the really bad news was that it smelt of bad chesse. Do you think it sounds dead? I will be devastated if it is???? Jules - West Sussex.

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26/04/2010 at 12:27

Jules: It does sound as if the frost, cold and wet have got down into this agapanthus, and it is dead! My agapanthus are now in strong growth, with new green leaves developing. Do give it time, and perhaps part of the root system is still alive, but from your description this sounds unlikely. Looks like a shopping trip is needed to find a replacement.

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19/05/2010 at 15:06

Our agapanthus has been in the same half-barrel for 10 years flowering profusely the more pot-bound it became. Failure to protect them from frost this last winter seems to have killed off the centre. There is a fringe of green leaves, No way can it be re-potted, so I have sawed out the centre and am filling the hole with new compost - and await results !

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25/05/2010 at 18:11

CAN YOU TELL ME WHEN YOU CAN SPLIT AGAPANTHUS ENIGMA

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11/06/2010 at 21:07

I too am keen to know when I should split my agapanthus. It measures about 50-60cm in width and the pot is 40cm. I am not sure which one it is but I have had it four years and it's flowered beautifully each year with increasing flower heads but this year, despite looking v healthy, I see no signs of flowers coming. Perhaps I need more patience but having read all the wonderful advice from Adam and others (many thanks) I think it may need more food but I think it also may be too pot bound. It survived the cold winter in the garage this year having been badly affected the year before when left outside unprotected. Any advice on when to divide would be gratefully received. Thank you!

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01/07/2010 at 16:36

Results - 6 weeks later !!! I had sawn out the centre of the solid mass of roots with an old pruning saw, and replaced it with new home-made compost. This meant that the half-barrel absorbed the regular watering and feeding instead of it just pouring away. I am now looking forward to 42 buds opening up. Has anyone else tried this alternative to re-potting ?

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02/10/2010 at 13:36

My agapanthus have been brilliant this year despite a very cold last winter. I have kept the flowers until now do you think that cutting the flowers should be done now or should they be allowed to die back naturally before pruning and mulching?

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14/10/2010 at 00:21

I need to know how to propagate an Agapanthus from the leaves themselves. This is because of a rare variety unavailable by normal means. Has anyone any experience of this? Regards, Frank

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16/10/2010 at 11:48

I love Agapanthus and want to know how to over winter them ...I can only grow in pots and have put one big plant in a neighbours shed and one or two in my "plastic" greenhouse I lost 3 plants last year due to frost and wet no matter how hard I tried to shelter them... Any tips please...am only a novice gardner...if it grows it grows sort....many thanks x