Alstroemeria

A generous flowering plant whose stems bring colour to the garden, the house and the neighbourhood Sharing Stall.

Flowers that travel beyond the garden

When the alstroemeria is flowering, there is usually enough to enjoy in the garden and still cut a few stems for indoors. Its bright flowers return through the warmer months and bring bees and other insects into the beds.

Some stems become small bunches for the Sharing Stall. We like that this plant does more than make the garden beautiful—it allows a little of that beauty to leave the property and be enjoyed by someone else.

Its role in the garden

• Provides a long season of flowers in the productive garden.

• Supports bees and other visiting insects.

• Supplies durable stems for household flower arrangements.

• Creates bunches that can be shared through the Sharing Stall.

• Forms a returning perennial layer without annual replanting.

At a glance

Location: Flower beds and cutting garden
Plant type: Rhizomatous flowering perennial
Flowering: Mainly spring to autumn
Botanical name:Alstroemeria hybrids
Family: Alstroemeriaceae
Pollination: Bees and other insects
Management: Divide or contain the clump if needed

Alstroemeria shows that what a garden shares with its community does not always have to be food.