If left to grow in gutters, Agapanthus can form a strong root ball and take hold of the gutter and the grow under the roof into the cavity.
Agapanthus love to grow in the full sun to part shade. They do not need a lot of watering, except in the hot, dry weather. Having adequate water at this time sees them through. Gutters with these plants in them will hold moisture due to the root ball being so thick.
This is not good for your gutter. Moisture held in gutters will rust much faster than dry clean gutters. The weight of the plants and soil they grow in can cause the gutter to sag away from the fascia board.
Did you know that a plant grown from seed takes four or more years to flower?
So if you have Agapanthus growing in your gutter and they are flowering, it is likely they have been there a long time.
The photo below shows a line of Agapanthus growing along the fence. The seeds have been blown by the wind or dropped by birds into the gutter and grown in the very suitable mulchy sludge that was in the gutter.
You do not want to leave these plants to grow large and multiply. Once the root bulb takes hold of the gutter it can become root bound. It takes a long time and a lot of effort to cut these out of the gutter.
This will cost you more in the long run:
- The gutter clean takes longer, costing more
- The gutter life is reduced the longer you leave this type of debris to sit. Therefore you may need to replace guttering sooner
- The plant can grow into the cavity
- The sheer weight in the gutter can cause sagging, again either replacement of gutter or needing to have a plumber rehang the gutters
These gutters in Taroona took us twice as long as it would normally take to clean.
If you have any plants growing, be it Agapanthus or anything else, the principle still applies.
It will cost more in the long run.
Call us today and give your gutters a new lease on life.
