Thompson & Morgan is celebrating after its Agapanthus 'Black Jack' was crowned the RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year 2023. 

The company said: "When four of our entries were shortlisted, we hardly dared to hope that one of these would take the winning spot. We are immensely proud to have scooped a hat trick of winners, with Hydrangea ‘Euphoria Pink’ in second, followed by Weigela 'Camouflage' in third. With some strong contenders in this year’s competition, this stunning achievement has been made all the more special."

'Black Jack' offers bigger flowers and more blooms through the season. This amazing Agapanthus produces 10 times as many florets per flowerhead for a flowering season twice as long as its competitors.

Easy to grow and heat tolerant, 'Black Jack' boasts strong vigour and a striking presence in borders and containers. Large flowerheads are filled with black buds that open to deep black-purple striped blooms – these fade to deep purple and take on a dazzling metallic sheen with age.

De Wet Plant Breeders, South Africa, set out to produce disease resistant, vigorous, heat-tolerant and multi-flowering cultivars and a black cultivar was always high on the wish list. 17 years into the program, they finally got "the one"! 'Black Jack' is a unique Agapanthus that’s the result of years of dedicated hybridised breeding.