Alliums- ornamental

 Growing Alliums

Alliums are a good pick for early to late spring color in Michigan gardens.  A member of the garlic and onion family, they are highly resistant to deer or squirrel damage and are easy to grow.  There are native alliums and a number of cultivated species. They multiply in the garden and last for many years.  Alliums look good in both formal settings, especially the large globe flowered varieties, and in informal mixed beds. The flower heads can be cut and dried for floral arrangements.

Alliums come in all sizes from 5 foot tall giants to tiny border plants.  The most common color is shades of purple, but alliums also come in white, pink and yellow.  Many have globe or ball shaped flower clusters at the end of a long stalk but there are alliums with drumstick shaped clusters, loose spidery flowers, and dangling flower clusters.   The flowers have 6 petals, usually star shaped, but some alliums have bell shaped flowers.  The flowers do not smell like onions or garlic.  Each allium flower turns into a hard brown or black seed.

Allium leaves vary by the species but most are long and narrow and flattened, similar to daylily leaves.   Some are narrow and rounded, like onion leaves and can be as fine as grass blades.  When allium leaves are damaged they do smell like onions.  The leaves arise from the base of the plant, there are no branches, and flowers are produced on stems arising from the center of the plant.

Allium care

Alliums are planted as bulbs in the fall.   Bulbs vary tremendously in size, depending on species.  Plant them about three times as deep as their diameter.    You won’t have to worry about animals eating these bulbs, although they can be thrown out of the ground by digging.   Alliums prefer full sun areas, and well drained loam soil.  They will grow in clay soil if it drains well or sandy areas if there is enough moisture.   They can be planted near deciduous trees where there is no shade early in the season and will generally do well.  Alliums spread by both seeds and making new bulblets and can spread across the garden.

Alliums will not require fertilization unless you have poor, nutrient depleted sandy soil and require watering only if spring is very dry or your soil is mainly sand.   They are not bothered by insects or disease very often.  The taste is unpleasant to deer, rabbits and other animals and they are generally left alone.  Bees do find their nectar attractive. 

Like most spring flowering bulbs the foliage of alliums dies back a few weeks after flowering.  Do not cut the foliage off until it has naturally yellowed and died.  It needs that foliage to make food to produce next year’s flowers.  You may want to cut off the seed heads that form before the seeds ripen to keep them from spreading.

Small flowered alliums

Allium varieties

For those huge purple globes of violet- purple choose Globemaster, Allium  Rosenbachianum, or Allium  Giganteum.  Smaller globes and plants include Ivory Queen, only a foot tall with large white globes, Lucy Ball, with small red-purple balls, Allium aflatuense, purple, Mars and Venus have medium sized globes on shorter plants.

Alliums that are low growing with loose clusters of flowers include Allium moly( yellow), Allium neapolitanum( white) and Allium Ostrowskianum (pink).

Fireworks alliums are a blend of white, purple and yellow flowered plants about 18 inches tall with clusters of dangling flowers.  Hair alliums are for those who like the exotic, they have green, hair like petals in a wild hairdo fashion on top of 2 foot plants.  There are dozens of other allium varieties.