Seasonal Wild Flowers

Latin name

Agapanthus praecox

Other names

Common Agapanthus, Lily of the Nile

Family

Amaryllidaceae (Agapanthaceae)

Flowering season

July to September

English distribution

It is quite widespread on the Isles of Scilly and the far

southwest of Cornwall. It has also been found in Suffolk,

the West Midlands and Yorkshire.

See the BSBI distribution map for African Lily

Habitat

It is a neophyte, which was introduced from South Africa

into the UK in the 1680s. It is widely grown in gardens,

parks and amenity areas, especially in the South.

It has escaped and become naturalised on waste ground. 

It is widespread on Tresco and Bryher on the Scillies,

where it grows extensively on sand dunes.

Description

African Lily is a , rhizomatous, evergreen herb, growing

up to 1m.

The flowers are in large, diffuse almost spherical

flowerheads.  

Individual flowers are trumpet-shaped, up to 5cm long and

various shades of bright blue or occasionally white.

There are 6 stamens with white filaments and blue anthers.

There is a single, filamentous style.

The fruit is a 3-sided capsule

The leaves are evergreen, strap-like and up to 70cm.

The flower stem is round and up to 120cm.