Tall Alliums for your Garden Borders

Alliums are plants of exquisite beauty that deserve a place in perennial gardens. Easy to grow and undemanding, these very ornamental bulbs distinguish themselves by their great diversity in color, inflorescence, flowering height, and bloom times. Many species bloom in late spring to early summer – just after the spring-flowering period and just before the exuberant full bloom of summer.

• The tall Alliums in particular are very impressive when towering up above lower-growing plants or ground covers. They are definitely displayed at their loveliest when placed among perennial plants in the border. Their leaves, which are usually not very attractive and which also wither back quickly after flowering, will then be hidden beneath the leaves of the perennial plants. Their violet, purple, and lilac colors displayed by their often globe-shaped inflorescence make a gorgeous contrast to the less compact inflorescence of most perennial plants. 
• Acting as a focal point, they should be planted in groups of 4 or 5, never singly.
• They make excellent cut flowers for fresh or dried bouquets.
• They are easily grown in full sun in fertile, well-drained soil. Add grit when grown in clay soils to improve drainage.
• Alliums attract bees and butterflies but are relatively resistant to deer, chipmunks, and rabbits.
• Alliums are virtually pest and disease free! There are no serious diseases or insect pests that bother them.