Allium 'Purple Rain'

Fill the gap between spring and summer with style Allium ‘Purple Rain’ has open, starry umbels up to 15cm across that will have in awe for a month or more. For us they begin around mid October and continue to impress into December, aging gracefully to shades of straw. Such excellent value.

This Allium holds the prestigious RHS Award of Garden Merit, which means it is easy to grow, handsome and shows strong garden performance. In the 2016 Wisley AGM trials it was noted as “Superb – best in trial”. It has healthy multiplication and flowers strongly from the first year.

Allium ‘Purple Rain’ is a hybrid of A. ‘Purple Sensation’ and A. christophii and flowers just after A. ‘Purple Sensation’.

Alliums are tough, hardy, and beautiful too! As members of the onion family, their bruised, or crushed foliage smells just like onions.

Plant Allium ‘Purple Rain’ into well drained soil in a sunny position. The soil drainage is important as the bulbs rot easily if left in soggy soils. If your soil is poor, adding some lime and compost to the soil prior to planting can help to give them a good start in the garden.

They will need at least six hours of sun and a warm spot in the garden to thrive. As the stems are tall, they should be sheltered from strong winds because while they are strong, there is only so much they can do.

Plant to a depth of around 7-10cm or twice the diameter of the bulb. Once planted, Allium ‘Purple Rain’ bulbs are best left to naturalise. This means you can relax and leave them in the ground year after year and just enjoy flowers as they rise. To help them on the way, add a well balanced fertiliser in autumn. Don’t forget to mark their position (we use wooden kebab sticks just out of the ground) as you don’t want to put a spade through one!

Our Tip: Plant amongst summer perennials that emerge to keep the foliage hidden. As with most Alliums, the leaves begin yellow as the blooms take off, or you can just as easily pull them out. It is also a good idea to protect new foliage from slugs and snails (it emerges in spring).