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Stylish Alliums for your garden

August 21, 2012 By Jill Anderson Leave a Comment

Not wanting to wish the remains of the summer away, but it’s time to start thinking about planting bulbs if you want a fabulous display next year. Planting isn’t until the autumn, but they’re available now and you get a much wider choice if you’re quick off the mark.

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Alliums are one of my favourite bulbs, with their strong, distinctive shape they always look stylish, and they’re good as cut flowers too.

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This is Allium scorodoprasum Art, I love the colour and the crazy, random shape of the flower-head.

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Allium schubertii looks like an exploding firework, the flower-head reaches 45cm in diameter.

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As another bonus the seed-heads are wonderful too, I sprayed one white for the top of my Christmas tree and for the rest of the year it sits in this vase in my hall.

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Like all bulbs they’re such good value, the only effort required is planting them and then they obligingly re-appear every year.

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This is Allium sphaerocephalum, the drum-stick allium, it starts off this lovely soft green and then produces a purple top.

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Nectaroscordum, unlike other alliums it’s happier in semi-shade, it looks lovely as the flower bud fattens up and the blooms gradually emerge.

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Planting advice:

The plumpest ones  produce the best flowers, check that they look healthy with no sign of mildew.

Plant at twice their depth in well-drained soil, in moist but well-drained soil. If your soil is heavy and waterlogged add some grit or fine shingle to the base of the planting hole and place the bulb in the hole with the flattish end of the bulb sitting on the ground.

Let the leaves turn brown after flowering so they have chance to photosynthesize, which fattens up the bulb to flower again next season.

Planting position:

Alliums love a sunny spot in the garden, though Nectaroscordum don’t mind a bit of shade.

Think about where you position the bulbs so the leaves are mostly hidden as they fade.

Stand back and look forward to seeing them nosing their way up through the soil next year ready to flower from May onwards.

Jill

 

all images: Jill Anderson

Related posts:

Five top bulbs for autumn planting How to plant spring and early summer flowering bulbs. A perfect little woodland plant – Hacquetia epipactis Monday inspiration ~ an elegant plant for your garden

Related posts:

Five top bulbs for autumn planting How to plant spring and early summer flowering bulbs. A perfect little woodland plant – Hacquetia epipactis Monday inspiration ~ an elegant plant for your garden
Filed Under: Blog, Plants Tagged With: Allium, Allium schubertii, allium sphaerocephalon, bulb planting., Nectaroscordum

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Hello, I’m Jill Anderson.
This is where you’ll find good, solid information about gardening, growing fruit & vegetables and how to keep it all looking good.
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The healing, calming power of nature in one photo. The healing, calming power of nature in one photo.
These wonderful autumn colours won’t be around for much longer. But that’s ok, because now is what matters, & their fleeting beauty makes them even more precious.
It’s easy to see how being among trees & nature is so beneficial for our health & wellbeing. 
Have a great Sunday.
Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it lo Savouring all the autumn colour, & doesn’t it look spectacular with this bold front door.
Today has been hard work, after a lovely time last week in Norfolk. The north coast there is spectacular. Realising these last few months, that there are so many beautiful places here. 
Have a nice evening.
Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Vis Charming glasshouse at Houghton Hall, Norfolk. Visiting to see the Anish Kapoor sculptures, which are amazing, but unprepared for the beauty of the grounds & garden. 
Such a treat, worth coming to Norfolk for this alone!
Hope you’re keeping well, & managing to smile some of the time. x
P.S. more of Houghton Hall & Anish Kapoor on my stories
We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberrie We stopped off on the way home to pick blackberries, after coffee & cake, sitting in the churchyard - the cafe was full, & the churchyard is a quiet, peaceful spot..... as you’d expect.
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One little advantage of lockdown is walking so much more, rather than using the car. Though it shouldn’t have taken something as momentous as this, for me to change bad habits 🙁
Hope you’re weekend is going well.
My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from My hazel arch, a bit lopsided 🙄 using wood from a random clump of hazel on the garden. Now looking much better covered in winter squash plants, so you can’t see just how ramshackle it is. I like to think it has a certain home-spun charm .

Great for small space gardening, imagine how much room you need to grow these without vertical supports.

I’ve got 2 Uchiki kuri, lovely nutty flavour.
1 Turks turban, for its flamboyant shape & colours, though it also tastes good.
One unknown, grown by my grandsons in their homeschooled science lesson.
Close-ups of the squash over on my stories.
Stay cool my friends x
I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium reg I wanted to show you this lovely lily ( Lilium regale) which is flowering right outside our bedroom window. 
It gets sun for about 4 hours only, you can order the bulbs now for planting in September. It’ll reappear every year & waft delicious scent around your garden, or through your windows.
Have a very happy Monday x
It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be It’s British Flower Week, there’s a lot to be said for fabulous seasonal flowers that haven’t travelled thousands of miles ...... & are wonderful for biodiversity
A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-s A bit of rain, nice long days (it’s almost mid-summer!) & it’s, mostly, all growing nicely.

Spinach, courgettes & garlic in shot here. 
Enjoy the rest of your Sunday x
Hope is a decision I’ve thought long & hard abou Hope is a decision
I’ve thought long & hard about how to view the tumult in the world we’re living in now. 
The only thing that works for me, is to choose hope.

It’s a tall order, but avoiding mainstream news & speculation helps avoid the anxiety, that’s often waiting in the wings.

One day soon there’ll be grandchildren clambering over this again.
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