Allium 2013

[olegKon]

I would say Allium sikkimense as well, Mark.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Could it be allium macrostemon var uratense??
I also post a photo from my macrostemon.
(or maybe the one Mark posted)?

http://www.nature-museum.net/album/ShowSpAlbum.aspx?spid=50154

I dug the plants today and it cannot be allium macrostemon var uratense because it does not have a round bulb.  also after flowering the stems does not wither over the summer and come clean from the bulb but stays firmly attached well into fall.

http://content60.eol.org/content/2012/01/23/21/36570_orig.jpg

original post:  http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10020.msg279951#msg279951
repost of flowers:  http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10020.msg280214#msg280214

[wmel]

I dug the plants today and it cannot be allium macrostemon var uratense because it does not have a round bulb.  also after flowering the stems does not wither over the summer and come clean from the bulb but stays firmly attached well into fall.

It is indeed a lot different as allium macrostemon!
I didn't harvest my macrostemon, but let it make good seed.
Now the bulbs just starting to grow again after summer and getting green.
The bulbs are small size 4-8, and they are white

[Mark Griffiths]

thanks Oleg!

[wmel]

I dug the plants today and it cannot be allium macrostemon var uratense because it does not have a round bulb.  also after flowering the stems does not wither over the summer and come clean from the bulb but stays firmly attached well into fall.

When I see the photo of your "bulbs" , and then again looking to the flowers, It looks like allium amphibolum a bit???

[Maggi Young]

In an afternoon of blog catch-up reading, I discover that Panayoti Kelaidis has been getting some more inspiration from McMark - that fellow's influence runs wide!
http://www.botanicgardens.org/blog/overlooked-alliums

[johnralphcarpenter]

Interesting article about edible alliums in last Saturday's Daily Telegraph - probably viewable online.

[TheOnionMan]

In an afternoon of blog catch-up reading, I discover that Panayoti Kelaidis has been getting some more inspiration from McMark - that fellow's influence runs wide!
http://www.botanicgardens.org/blog/overlooked-alliums

Nothing gets by you Maggi   

I do believe Panayoti's strategic post helped lift me from my oniony despair, when 2-1/2 years of neglect in my Allium garden led to such weed-infested overgrowth, that the garden is essentially "lost". I have started into a massive overhaul, deeply spading the garden, a few square feet at a time, lifting all plants, salvaging what I can, extracting rhizomes of aggressive field grasses, vetches and blackberries from plants to be kept, washing off all soil when necessary.  It's very slow going, I have touched perhaps 1/50th of the garden so far.  I was inspired this summer, finding so many surviving plants that are worth recovery and renewal, that I'm now committed to the process.

In one of the areas almost totally overwhelmed by field grass and 5' high goldenrod, had many choice forms of Allium stellatum, few are left, but here's one such deep color form extracted when the flowers revealed its location last week, found another one just this morning.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Hi Mark

can you post a picture of the  "Chinese species Allium henryi, a small affair akin to A. cyaneum with delicate sprays of light blue flowers with long protruding stamens."  that you referenced was in bloom in mid August in your response to Panayoti Kelaidis blog.

i have such difficulty positively identifying these Chinese blue alliums and wonder if they all hybridize to make a continuous blend from one to the others

Thanks Rimmer

[TheOnionMan]

Hi Rimmer, I'm uploading a few very poor photos, a couple from 2009 using my daughter's entry level digital camera (didn't do well capturing light color flowers), and two from this year taken at daybreak on a misty morning, so again, rather poor photos, but you'll get the idea.  It's a distinct species, with flat leaves, and few-flowered heads of pale blue.  This came from Chen Yi in 2003 as Allium cyathophorum (I was looking for the "type" species versus var. farreri), but all he plants were misidentified, but was happy to get this species.  It blooms mid August, and once again, failed to produce any seed.

I have seen first-hand lots of Allium hybridization in the garden, I cannot say with any certainty that I have witnessed hybrids between any of the late summer Chinese blue-flowered Alliums.

[Rimmer de Vries]

Thanks Mark
The flat leaf description helps a lot

I have this Chinese allium that came from Yijia Wang as No 2 fall blue
That has flattish leaves but round at base and appears to be making a odd flower bud on new growth
Any ideas in identity?

[TheOnionMan]

I'm not sure what to make of those new growth points, keep us posted if they develop any further in the remaining season.

[TheOnionMan]

A small Allium blooming now, seed grown from Aaron Floden in 2010, labeled Allium cernuum late from Carroll County, Arkansas.  It is a sweet little thing, stems 6"-14" tall, with delicate sideways sprays of light pink, I'm confident this is a form of Allium stellatum.  It has the ovoid white bulbs as is typical for stellatum, but surprisingly large in size given the delicate proportions of the plant.  I'm pleased to have this cute form flowering in September.

 

Close-up:

[Stephenb]

That's a nice Allium, Mark...

This one is just coming into flower. Seed propagated as Allium komarovii which it isn't...

[TheOnionMan]

Stephen, a good Allium too. Correct, it's not komarovii, but the name gets confused with A. komarovianum, the latter being a synonym of A. sacculiferum, and by some authorities listed as a synonym of A. thunbergii.  Alliums thunbergii and sacculiferum are very close, your allium is bound to be one of those two, probably thunbergii.  It's so useful having Allium species that flower so late.