Welcome to the end of the week. Today we are going to concentrate on one of the most beautiful flowers that you can plant in the fall. Today we are to talk about planting alliums.
Guide to Planting Alliums
If you have an herb garden and you grow chives, it’s possible that you are already somewhat familiar with alliums. These are tiny fluffy balls in beautiful purple that butterflies and bees love. But the ornamental alliums aren’t tiny. These globes are huge, and they grow on stems that soar to the sky. If you have children, one of the things that you want to plant are alliums, since the kids are going to love that the
Fast Guide:
- When to Plant: Fall
- When They Bloom: Late spring & summer
- Where to Plant Them: Full Sun & well-draining soil
- How to Water – Once after they’ve been planted and moderately during spring
- Width and Depth: 6 to 8” apart, 4 to 8” deep
- Storage: If you purchase the bulbs and they can’t be planted immediately, you want to make sure they’re correctly stored. They should be immediately unpacked and placed in a place that is dry that has lots of air circulating. The temperature should be between 40-70 Fahrenheit
Planting Alliums in Gardens and Containers
Just like any other flower bulb, it’s necessary for alliums to go through a period of cold for developing roots and getting prepared for spring. Therefore, once you’re feeling the first chill of fall, you want to plant them.
One of the best things about flower bulbs is how easy they are to grow. But they don’t enjoy getting really wet, since it will make them rot. Therefore, you want to steer clear of having soggy soil. Anywhere you are still seeing puddles 5 to 6 hours after it rains is a place to avoid. You can upgrade soil that is potentially soggy by adding some organic material like manure, bark or peat.
If you are planting the bulbs inside containers, you want to always make sure that there is enough drainage. Get a box or pot with holes for drainage in its bottom.
Something else to know about alliums is they need lots of light for growing. So you want to avoid anywhere that doesn’t have full sun. You also want to plant them deep enough so that variations in temperatures above the ground aren’t going to affect them. unfortunately, a container won’t protect your bulbs the way that planting them in the ground will. Therefore, if you are living in the zones 3 to 7 it’s a good idea to put the container inside, in an area that’s dark, cool, and well-aired. You also want to make sure that its temperature won’t go above 60 degrees. A garage or unheated basement are perfect choices.
The typical method to calculate the right depth is to make sure the hole’s 3x the height of your bulb. Then place your bulb at the hole’s bottom with the point sticking up. Because alliums are going to grow a lot better when they’re not fighting for nutrients, you want to plant the bulbs 6” to 8” apart from each other.
So that your bulbs can settle and quickly grow roots, you want to water them very well after they’ve been planted. However, they won’t need watering again.
During the blooming season, generally you won’t have to water them. however, you can if you have a period of 3 to 5 days without rain. Once they’ve done blooming, you shouldn’t cut their foliage immediately. The foliage is going to provide necessary nutrients through photosynthesis. Once the foliage turns yellow and dies back. That’s when it can be removed. Now the bulbs go dormant and isn’t going to need watering until the following spring.
Tips for Planting Alliums in a Garden
- Wait until your soil temperature is 60 or lower. This is going to be in September/October.
- Choose a spot in the garden where the soil’s well-draining and it will get full sun.
- Plant your bulbs at a depth of around 4”-8” and around 6”-8” apart from each other. The bulbs’ pointy end should face up.
- Water your bulbs once well and then wait until spring.
- Once they’ve bloomed, don’t cut their foliage off. Leave the foliage there until it’s yellow and withered completely, and then remove it.
Tips for Planting Alliums Inside Containers
- Wait until your soil temperature is 60 or lower. This is going to be in September/October.
- Choose an area that receives full sun.
- Find a container that is well-draining and then fill it full of loose soil. Make sure that water isn’t going to gather and remain at its bottom.
- Plant your bulbs at a depth of around 4”-8” and around 6”-8” apart from each other. The bulbs’ pointy end should face up. Because a container will often have some limited space, it’s also possible to experiment by placing them a bit closer. However, they shouldn’t touch.
- Once they’ve bloomed, don’t cut their foliage off. Leave the foliage there until it’s yellow and withered completely, and then remove it.
Tips for Special Effects with Planting Alliums
If you are interested in keeping things tidy or you want to maximize your alliums’ wow factor, a good way to do that is by choosing a really regimented approach when planting alliums. This means growing the alliums in extremely neat rows. Put around 10 bulbs in the rows and make sure they are close. It’s a good idea to add fertilizer to your soil so that they are getting the necessary nutrients.
Another thing that you can do is to grow a row of alliums that are a lot taller, such as the Purple Sensation in back of ones that are a bit smaller such as Azuzeum.
Want to have some help with planting alliums or other kinds of flower bulbs? Contact us and we’ll be glad to give you a quote to plant bulbs for you.
