I wish they were invasive. How could you have too many of such a good blooming plant. My wife has a vase with about 25 blooming stems on the coffee table right now. This time of year they grow too tall and fall over. Alstroemeria need to be pulled like Rhubarb and they will just keep blooming all summer. They are hardy here and just take a rest in the winter but never completely disappear. If you want to keep them in a container, just keep pulling the spent stems to keep them blooming. You can devide them by just cutting through the root mass and potting back up. Al

Dear Al
In the right situation Alstroemeria is indeed invasive - particularly some of the species. (Are they ever!!!) Think a mild zone 9, woodland edge and good humus and a light soil and tubers forever... :-(( I don't care how pretty they are...OUT WITH THEIR ROOTS!!!

I have found that the line/s marketed here as 'Aztec Princess' need to be repotted annually otherwise they overcrowd and lose vigour. These are generally quite short growers (12-18").

Excellent drainage and a moisture-holding but free-draining mix. Leaf mould yes and peat no.
A larger pot to accommodate all the tubers and as deep as wide. 10" minimum.

The hybrids flower on and off from spring to autumn, with a main flush in early summer, though this may be climate-dependant.

Enjoy, donnabaskets. They're safest in pots!

Hmmm, anybody in the deep south want to weigh in?

Some are spreaders, but some of the newer cultivars aren't. I have tried A. 'Freedom' and A. 'Sweet Laura' a couple of times and could not get them to establish, but others in my same area have. Tony Avent grows these cultivars (which are also supposed to be heat tolerant) in the display gardens at PDN, and they look just lovely. I have a brown thumb when it comes to Alstroemeria evidentally. I was thinking about trying them again, but a local gardener informed me that the deer like to sample them, and I'm trying to stay away from planting deer food these days, so I've abandoned the idea.

Mine spread readily, but I wouldn't go so far as to call them invasive. The clumps just get wider and wider. I must admit that some roots tried to break up a rock wall.
Ruth

I have Sweet Laura. Mine are in ground, I would not call them invasive by any means, I wouldn't mind if they spread more.

I am surprised to hear that deer like Alstroemeria. Deer are regulars in my garden and have never touched them. Al

Maybe you just have other things they like better, Al. :)
Thanks, all. I have planted them, but will keep a very close eye on them. The flowers are just so lovely.... I hope my deer are picky like yours, Al.

I have some.I've spread mine around.I have some in both sun& shade.Actually the happy meduim is morning sun then shade till 3 pm its back to full sun till about 6ish and later as summer moves on.Full complete Tx sun will lighten the foliage and that set of plants is usually the 1st to die back. mine a are a dark reddish color with green tips.
a neighbor of mine grew hers in an old strawberry bed thing(the metal circles with 3 layers?) I liked the way she did it.it had some dwarf cannas at the top and nicotina& I don't know what the purple trailing flower was.I'd seen amaryllis pop up in it too.

I share mine too.I'd love to have some of the others.I'd love sweet Laura,I hear shes fragrant too boot.

I haven't looked at my page in sometime,but there may be a picture of it as it IS something I do trade. seeds take 5 years to bloom.mine sets seeds.they 'POP' too and scatter.They WILL launch a lid resting on a bowl.

Donna,I'd love any that fall out of your pot!But sorry no container experiance,though I can suggest if you worry on them spreading just grow them in more shade,or maybe up by trees in hard soil(most my yard is sandy loam,but the ones by old driveway they don't really thrive& the soils hardness may be why...if asked the mums,daylilly,carolina vine& glads..lol)
good Luck!

Hi DonnaB.

I'm in West Tennesee and my Alstoemeria grow just fine. They are in a part shade environment. I can't remember the name but I have two plants. So far, they each grow to less than a foot tall. I wanted the tall type that you find in stores and flower shops ..however, these bloom beautifully and came back this year with no problem. It is my understanding that there are two distinct species of Alstormeria. The species from Chile are winter-growing plants while those of Brazil are summer-growing. I think i must have the Brazilian species. Mine blooomed all last year until had first frost. ..They then went dormant down to the ground ..but popped out again this spring. ..Looks like they are perennial here in our south. Oh..I haven't done anything special to them at all. Just placed them in good soil and I water as needed. ..Also, mine are not invasive at all.

I HATE alstroemeria!! Yes, they are beautiful - but they are horribly invasive under the perfect conditions (see vetivert8's description above), which I have. We are in Zone 9b, with woodland shade and loamy soil. The deer eat the blossoms, so it isn't even good for cut flowers. Pitchforking hundreds of its rhizomes out of the ground merely encourages this pest. Leggy alstroemeria stalks are tangled thigh-deep in all my plants, overflowing the paths, leaning into the neighbors' yard, and generally being the "garden thugs" someone has called them. I looked up ways to control them, including using the dreaded RoundUp. Apparently, there are only two ways to avoid alstroemeria once it has become invasive: You either move away - or die!