About
This perennial bulb forms clumps quickly and reaches a height of up to 60 cm. It is nearly evergreen and features narrow leaves at the base of the stem. In midsummer, it produces new foliage alongside clusters of rich purple, bell-shaped flowers that grow in dense, elongated umbels.
About the genus
Allium consists of bulbous herbaceous perennials characterized by a pronounced onion or garlic aroma. They feature linear, strap-like, or cylindrical leaves that arise from the base. The flowers, which can be star-shaped or bell-shaped, are arranged in an umbel atop a stem that lacks leaves.
Growing conditions
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil type
- Chalk, Loam, Sand
- Soil pH
- Acid, Alkaline, Neutral
- Soil moisture
- Moist but well-drained, Well-drained
- Aspect
- South-facing, East-facing, West-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H5
Plant details
- Plant type
- Bulbs
- Habit
- Clump forming
- Foliage
- Semi evergreen, Evergreen
- Height
- 0.5-1 metres
- Spread
- 0.1-0.5 metres
- Time to full height
- 2-5 years
- Suggested uses
- City and courtyard gardens, Coastal, Cottage and informal garden, Gravel garden, Patio and container plants, Wildlife gardens
- Fragrance
- Foliage
- Toxicity
- TOXIC to pets - see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants for further information and useful contact numbers
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Grow in full sun and fertile well-drained soil. It is best to grow in containers where garden soil is heavy clay and prone to saturation over winter. Rapidly forms clumps but is not a nuisance. See allium cultivation
- Pruning
- No pruning required, other than to remove old flowered stems and foliage
- Propagation
- Propagate by offsets which can be carefully detached by lifting the bulb after flowering has finished. See bulb propagation
- Pest resistance
- May be susceptible to allium leaf miner and onion fly
- Disease resistance
- May be susceptible to onion white rot, and onion downy mildew