Allium 2010

[arillady]

Funny how you can judge a plant without all the information. I would not have thought you could have sweet smelling alliums. Is there many that are sweetly scented. I am probably showing my ignorance by asking this. Ah well we all have to learn from the masters.

[Lesley Cox]

The little pink-flowered species collected in 1966 by Albury, Cheese and Watson in Turkey (should know its name by now) has flowers scented of lily-of-the-valley but the foliage if bruised has the usual oniony scent.

[olegKon]

A close up of Allium greyeri

[arillady]

Do all the alliums have that onion smell to their leaves?
As I can't grow the real Lily of the Valley that forgotten species Lesley would be a good substitute.

[olegKon]

Pat, to my poor knowledge they do but for many only if the leaves are crashed

[TheOnionMan]

The little pink-flowered species collected in 1966 by Albury, Cheese and Watson in Turkey (should know its name by now) has flowers scented of lily-of-the-valley but the foliage if bruised has the usual oniony scent.

The ACW Allium goes around erroneously as A. olympicum, but the correct identification is Allium kurtzianum.  Here are two recent photos, this year all of the foliage dried up before flowering as it's been very hot and dry here, and for the most part, I do not water the "allium garden".  In the second view taken 4 days after the first photo, you can see how the fertilized flowers become erect and turn a deeper pink.  Only about 2" tall (5 cm) in flower.

While I'm here, I added a photo of Allium flavum var. tauricum x A. kurtzianum, in flower now with bronzy-pink flowers, one of my favs.  Also, a dwarf pink Allium flavum var. tauricum, a likely parent type plant of this cross.

Regarding scent, most alliums have sweet-scented flowers, many sweet yet slightly oniony too (I like it ), and others that are just very sweet without a noticeable onion scent. The ones that are ill-scented are actually fairly rare.  There is even a secion of the genus, Section Odoratae, so named for the very sweet scented flowers.  It is typically the foliage and bulbs that exude an onion scent when bruised.  Of course there are exceptions, there are some allium, in certain sections of the genus, with barely any alliaceous scent in the foliage at all. 

It's so hot today, I think some of my onions will start self-sauteing in the garden

[Lesley Cox]

Thanks for the name Mark. I had it from the collection as species, then it was listed in the AGS as olympicum and then I found out that wasn't right either, but didn't know what was. I'll do a label right away. I find it hybridizes with flavum v. minor readily but all the seedlings have been lemon rather than pink or apricot. Flavum too, is nicely scented in the flower. I think my kurtzianum is a little deeper pink than yours, more rosy. Here, the leaves are always gone by the time the flowers are out. I grow it in a trough.

[arillady]

Is there an Allium book?

[TheOnionMan]

Is there an Allium book?

There is a book, best considered as an Allium primer; "Alliums" by Dilys Davies, published in 1992 by B.T. Batsford Ltd.  It is a reasonably good introduction to the genus, but there is so much more.

[TheOnionMan]

What follows is an indulgent photo essay on Nodding Onion, or Allium cernuum.  There are so many faces to this incredibly variable species, few realize what the species is about, from modest (insignificant) pale flowered things you'd hardly give a second glance at, to much more compelling beauties, and everything in between. From bold clumping plants, to lone individualists, the range of possibilities is fantastic, their architectural form, particularly in bud, is memorable.  My garden is now mostly represented by the better forms, mixing and commingling in the interesting ways.

Part 1

[TheOnionMan]

Allium cernuum - indulgent photo essay Part 2

[TheOnionMan]

Allium cernuum - indulgent photo essay Part 3

[Stephenb]

Please keep up the indulgence, Mark - one of my favourites! I have a dwarf selection which will flower for the first time that really does seem to be small compared to my others. Do you have any information on the typical size of the wild species (height and flower size), or does it vary “wildly”? (OK, stupid question: a wild plant would vary wildly I suppose…). My oldest cernuum I got as Pink Giant. I posted some pictures on my Edible Alpines thread some time ago. You may not have seen them as the pictures had become dead links as I had put them on Photobucket (Maggi: I now know the foolishness of my ways and am now fully reformed). I’ve now reposted those pictures and will do the same with the other pictures in that thread (in time). See

http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3085.msg76185#msg76185

[Maggi Young]

(Maggi: I now know the foolishness of my ways and am now fully reformed). I’ve now reposted those pictures and will do the same with the other pictures in that thread (in time).

Hallelujah! the sinner repents.... and so is forgiven

[TheOnionMan]

Please keep up the indulgence, Mark - one of my favourites! I have a dwarf selection which will flower for the first time that really does seem to be small compared to my others. Do you have any information on the typical size of the wild species (height and flower size), or does it vary “wildly”? (OK, stupid question: a wild plant would vary wildly I suppose…). My oldest cernuum I got as Pink Giant. I posted some pictures on my Edible Alpines thread some time ago. You may not have seen them as the pictures had become dead links as I had put them on Photobucket (Maggi: I now know the foolishness of my ways and am now fully reformed). I’ve now reposted those pictures and will do the same with the other pictures in that thread (in time). See

http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3085.msg76185#msg76185

Thanks Stephen, I had not seen your earlier exposé on A. cernuum, good series and good pics!  Average size of Allium cernuum in the wild, hmmm... I've observed it in the wild in many US States, and would say on average it is a smallish slender plant 12-16" (30-40 cm), but it can increase in size under better garden conditions.  The smallest from I had was from Dick Weaver of We-Du gardens, collected on Rich Mountain, North Carolina, that was no more than 5" (12.5 cm) tall in flower, a tiny plant with few-flowered heads of deep rose-purple.  It was a slow recalcitrant grower, and seemed to be nearly sterile as it rarely made seed, but I have since lost this choice dwarf form and thus it is probably lost from cultivation.  Please keep us posted on your dwarf form, I'm anxious to see it!

I haven't paid too much attention to cultivar names, other than trying them from seed, as once they're seed grown the cultivar naming is negating, but one can get some distinctive forms if option for such seed.  Even the two varieties named by Marion Ownbey, father of American Allium taxonomy, var. obtusum and var. neomexicanum, were later rescinded by the author himself (Ownbey), although most of the botanical world seems to have "never gotten the memo", including the USDA, because one still sees these names out there.  The varieties are quite meaningless if one observes plants from many locations.  I have collected many forms over the years, received many other forms from people, and opted for wild-collected seed... it is such fun to see the variability.  Then in the garden, the cernuums really start mixing things up with each other, and I get all kinds of wonderful plants.

And, then there are the interspecific hybrids, A. cernuum crossing with A. stellatum, and with unrelated species like the Asian A. nutans, senescens, and European angulosum, rubens, and others... all a whimsical potpourri, but we'll get there later.

I have another batch of photos coming tonight, to illustrate the different shape and arrangement of the inflorescences.