Despite its name, lily of the Nile, this plant isn’t native to Egypt or anywhere near the Nile. It is a native of the rivers and streams of Southern Africa in the coastal mountains of the Cape of Good Hope. The long dry season there has contributed to its drought resistance. The genus was named from the Greek for love flower by a French botanist. This plant is not a true lily either, but a member of the Amaryllis family with only two other species in cultivation, A. campanulatus and A. orientalis. The flower of Agapanthus inspired art and sculpture of the Modern movement and became a signature of midcentury pop art motifs.

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