Agapanthus
Agapanthus, while beautiful with gorgeous flowers, is also a hazard for our natural environment. It grows in large clumps which crowd out any hope for natives to establish themselves. It also spreads its seed far and wide and can take hold in the most inhospitable places.
The Greater Wellington Regional Council advises people not to plant Agapanthus and removes any it finds in areas identified as key native ecological areas. It does not list the plant in its pest management strategy – but only because the cost of controlling it would be too high.
Maungaraki, when you start to look, has Agapanthus everywhere. Removing it is difficult (it requires digging and multiple applications of chemicals) but managing it isn’t so hard. Just make sure to cut off any flower heads before they get the chance to set seed. If you do have seed heads, they can be cut off and burned or thrown out in landfill rubbish to prevent them from germinating in your garden.
Avoid planting new Agapanthus that can spread. Instead plant sterile Agapanthus cultivars (that don’t form viable seeds) or the beautiful native rengarenga.
More information on common weed plants can be found at these links:
https://www.weedbusters.org.nz/
http://www.gw.govt.nz/pest-plants/
Kindly written by Hana Craig.
