About
Allium 'Wight Cristo' is a perennial bulb known for its strong aroma and growth habit, forming clusters of bulblets. It features upright, narrow leaves that are greyish-green in color. As a soft-necked variety, it yields a substantial quantity of cloves, seldom producing flowers. This cultivar stores effectively but may require winter protection in regions with harsh cold. It is consistent in performance and straightforward to cultivate, producing sizable bulbs with a pink-tinged white outer layer.
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
- Well-drained
- Aspect
- South-facing, West-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- UK hardiness
- H4
Plant details
- Plant type
- Bulbs
- Habit
- Tufted
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Height
- 0.1-0.5 metres
- Spread
- 0.1-0.5 metres
- Time to full height
- 1 year
Care notes
- Cultivation
- Buy bulbs for growing - bulbs for eating may carry plant diseases or be unsuited to the UK climate. Grow in well-drained, fertile soil in a sunny position, planting individual cloves in late autumn/early winter, or in early spring. Keep plants well weeded and water in dry spells until the bulbs are well formed. Harvest in summer once the foliage withers. See Garlic (Grow your own)
- Pruning
- No pruning required
- Propagation
- Propagate by separating a mature bulb into individual cloves
- Pest resistance
- Generally pest-free
- Disease resistance
- May be susceptible to leek rust and onion white rot