30 Seeds w/Instructions
Apple of Peru (shoofly plant to some) is a half hardy perennial that’s usually grown as an annual in USDA zones 3 through 8. It can reach five feet in height by the end of the summer, and blooms for two to three months during the summer. It produces beautiful light purple to blue flowers that grow in a bell shape. As the season progresses, the stems and pods become burnished with a deep maroon to near black. The branches with the berries can be dried for use in arrangements.
In the southern U.S., people rub the leaves on their skin as a fly repellant and the plants, while attracting pollinators, repels (shoo-away) aphids, white-fly and other pests, which makes this a valuable plant for organic vegetable gardeners.