Think warm and well drained for best success with Alliums.
- Botanical Name
- Drumstick: A. sphaerocephalon. ‘Purple Rain’: A. aflatuenense. ‘Giganteum’: Allium giganteum. ‘Bridal Mist’: A. neapolitanum.
- Family
- Amaryllidaceae
- Size (HxW)
- Drumstick: 50-70cm x 10cm. ‘Purple Rain’: 70-90cm x 25cm. ‘Giganteum’: 90-120cm x 20cm. ‘Bridal Mist’: 20-40cm x 5-10cm.
- Depth & Spacing
- 7-20cm deep (twice the diameter of the bulb) and 10-30cm apart (see above) they like a bit of space to make the most of the sun. We suggest planting your bulbs amongst summer perennials that will emerge mid to late spring as they will keep the Allium’s fading foliage hidden.
- Soil
- It is essential the soil is well drained as they tend to rot in boggy soils. A sandy soil with a little blood and bone, compost and lime dug through before planting is ideal.
- Aspect
- Full Sun – at least six hours. The stems of some Allium are tall, and should be sheltered from strong winds. They are expensive because they are slow to multiply. You could get lucky and they will self seed so it is worth leaving the seed heads on – ‘Purple Rain’ is good at this. Seeds take five or six years to grow into flowering size.
- Climate
- Cool to Mediterranean
- Frost
- Hardy
- Water
- Only required if rainfall is low during active growth. Keep relatively dry during dormancy – they are endemic to the mountains of central Asia where they only get water with snow melt and so have little tolerance for moisture, especially in dormancy.
- Fertiliser
- Ideally use a well-balanced, organic fertiliser annually in late spring with the emergence of the foliage.
- Flowering Time
- Late spring to summer
- After Flower Care
- Remove spent flowers and foliage once they begin to look untidy. Unlike most bulbs, next season’s flower is formed when the bulb is in leaf, before the flower emerges, so there is no need to remove the flower head and they can remain decorative through summer – I cut mine for the vase, my mother in law used to spray paint hers.
- Notes
- They are best left to naturalise in the garden – this means you can leave them in the ground for years. Don’t forget to mark their position (we use wooden kebab sticks) as you don’t want to put a spade through one! It is normal for the foliage to yellow and die as the flower stem is growing, for this reason we recommend you plant them amongst perennials – or remove the leaves (just give them a tug), once the flowers begin to bloom as they no longer serve a purpose to the plants growth. The flowers are edible.
