Awesome Alliums, the Ornamental Onions

Regular Chives, Allium schoenoprasum

This week in the garden is notable for the unique show put on by a members of the onion family.  There are several bunches of chives growing in the yard, though all of them exist outside the official vegetable patch.  They seem to occur in the lawn, flowerbed, among groundcover, and between shrubs.  I'm fine with that.  I deadhead mine to prevent further spread and extra plants are given away to those not yet blessed with an abundance of this hardy perennial.  In case you weren't aware, do NOT pick and eat the flowering stems.  They are tough and twig-like in consistency.

In case you had ever thought about growing onion relatives for purely ornamental value (I'm sure this would greatly confuse my Mennonite ancestors), there are several varieties that are quite attention-grabbing and deserve to be planted in more gardens.  Our northern garden is limited to only a few types.  I tried some of the smaller ones (e.g. Allium moly luteum), but they got lost among all the larger perennials.

Allium "Purple Sensation" blooming June 21, 2012

Allium aflatunense/hollandicum "Purple Sensation" is a variety that has grown well here for a few years.  The occasional super-awful winter will kill them, but generally, these are okay here.  I get mine by mail order from Botanus.  I'd like to be able to grow "Globemaster" or Allium giganteum, and did try once, but their zone 6-9 hardiness rating just didn't suit our climate.  Their ball-shaped flower heads are very large and I've admired them in German and Pacific northwest gardens.  "Purple sensation" is rated for zone 4-9, as is the white-flowered Allium "Mount Everest" and the smaller-flowered A. atropurpureum, and A. azureum. 

Bees and butterflies are attracted to Alliums, but rodents and deer are said to be repelled.  However, we haven't really had any deer or rodent problems here, so I can't attest to that quality.  

The key to growing any of these ornamental alliums is to have some plants in front of them that will grow to hide the dying foliage.  The foliage is already dying as the plant gets into full bloom.  I have planted some annuals in front of mine. 
 

Allium "Purple Sensation" flower head

Allium "Purple Sensation" and some fine weather

I think I really must plant a few more of these this fall.  They're a cool architectural element in the garden.

Spring Colors and Textures

Here is a perennial that looks great this spring: Arabis blepharophylla "Spring Charm". I'm not sure if it's the hairy leaves that gave it the Latin name meaning "eyelash-leaved", but the bright pink flowers on this plant look lovely. I would love to have a few more like this one.

For a perennial that you can't kill, produces perky purple flowers, will spread itself around liberally, infiltrate the lawn and give an aroma of onions when you mow it, good old chives are the answer. I have removed most of these from my perennial beds, but I leave a few around and then cut the flowers off before they go to seed. I want to try some of the giant flowered alliums next year, but I know their hardiness will be in question. Every bulb catalog claims a different zone, so I might just buy a few different ones and cross my fingers. Any tips from prairie growers?

Here are some more pictures of my tulips in the long raised bed. I have a few open spaces in this bed, but each year the spaces are filling in. I planted some poppy seeds in the back of the bed this spring and I notice that the seedlings are about an inch tall now. There is a cluster of Pacific giant delphiniums intermixed with cleome in the center, and I'm hoping for a great show this summer.

"Florissa" single late tulip in the bright morning sun.