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| Category: Perennial |
| Family: Alliaceae (~Amaryllidaceae) |
| Origin: South Africa (Africa) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: White |
| Bloomtime: Winter |
| Synonyms: [Tulbaghia fragrans 'Alba'] |
| Height: 1-2 feet |
| Width: Clumping |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): Medium Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 25-30° F |
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Tulbaghia simmleri 'Alba' (Sweet Garlic) - An evergreen perennial with a bulblike rootstock that forms 1-2 foot tall and wide clumps of grey-green flate agapanthus like agapanthus like foliage and fragrant lavender-pink white flowers composed of 6 tepals with a crown in the center that are held in umbels on top of 1-2 foot tall erect stems in late winter and early spring as foliage is re-emerging and often lasting into summer with some rebloom in the fall and early winter. Plant in full coastal sun in a well drained soil and best if watered regularly late spring and summer. Dislikes went winter conditions and struggles a bit with dry summers but can survive with minimal summer irrigation. The deciduous crown is hardy to frosts and short duration temperatures down to around 20° F, but even a light frost will knock down the flowering stems. Unlike other commonly grown Tulbaghia this one is a great for the vase with flowers that can perfume a whole house. Since it is deciduous, it is best interplanted with evergreen perennials, grasses or sedges. The typical pink flowering Tulbaghia simmleri is found growing naturally in the northern Drakensberg Mountains of Mpumalanga and Limpopo, where it occurs on rocky ledges or in light humid mountain forests from 3,100 to 3,700 feet in altitudes. The genus was named to honor Ryk Tulbagh (1699-1771) the early governor of the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. This speciic epithet honors Paul Simmler, the chief gardener of the Boissier Collections in Geneva, who cultivated the specimens collected in the Transvaal, though this plant has long been in cultivation as as Tulbaghia fragrans and also has been known as T. pulchella and T. daviesii. In South Africa it is commonly known as Blommetjie and also has the English common names Sweet Wild Garlic, Frangrant Tulbaghia and Pink Agapanthus. We first got this plant from the Huntington Botanic Garden where there are large patches of both the white and pink forms of this species growing on the south facing slopes in their Subtropical Garden. We first grew this plant from 1989 until 2004 and are building stock to once again offer it and the pink Tulbaghia simmleri.
The information on this page is based on our library and online research as well as observations made of this plant as it grows in our nursery, in the nursery garden and in other gardens that we have visited. We have also incorporated comments received from others and always appreciate getting feedback of any kind from those who have some additional information, in particular if this information is contrary to what we have written or includes additional cultural tips that would aid others in growing Tulbaghia simmleri 'Alba'.
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