Allium 2011

[Maggi Young]

So pretty! Will you lift it right away to separate it from the purple forms?

[wmel]

So pretty! Will you lift it right away to separate it from the purple forms?

I will mark the plant and seperate it end of august, because the weather will be better than for re-planting allium.
although you wouldn't say with al the cold and wet weather we have had here for the last 3 weeks.......

[wmel]

And again some more....

a. scabriflorum
a. schubertii seeds
a. Hairy Friend cutting for flowers

Weitse, OH MY GOODNESS, you're growing A. scabriflorum!!! What a beautiful specimen, one of the very few blue-flowered "drumstick" onions, and a most excellent form of it too. Please tell us more about where this one came from, someplace in Turkey I'm sure, bout would like to know the details.  Why is this desirable species not better known and distributed in cultivation... I am most envious

Again this is an allium I bought from Janis Ruksans, and I must say it is a real beauty (again).
In 2008 I got 2 bulbs and this year I have about 20 flowers, so that will be 20 bulbs to harvest. It looks like a. scabriflorum is an very easy growing allium. I don't know anyone else who has this allium. (in Holland)
I don't wait for the seeds to be good, because till now I had only a few bulbs and I couldn't take the risk to lose them by harvesting the bulbs to late!
The second reason I don't wait for the seeds is because this allium is very late and it's almost the last one standing in a empty field...
Maby I have to plant it next year between the "plantforming" alliums instead of the "bulbforming" one's.

To know more about where this allium is comming from; maybe Janis Ruksans will tell us.............

[wmel]

NARGS journal just arrived here so enjoying Mark's second allium article.
Long life to Mark and the onions, I say!

Mark: Very good article about allium!!. Again learning a lot....

Is there a way to get these spectacular allium's from the photo's in your article??
a. shevockii , a. glandulosum , a. prattii(red) , a. nanodes , a. hierochuntinum , a. atrosanguineum(black and yellow) , a. chrysanthum , a. hamedanense .

I would very very very much try to grow such beautiful alliums in these nice colours!!!

[bulborum]

Allium flavum Tall Form flowers now
This one is over 60 cm Tall
with a nice strong flower-stem
But hardly multiplying
I try this year to harvest the seeds

Roland

[Knud]

Knud, I differ with the previous responses.  The distinctions between A. cyaneum and A. sikkimense (and beesianum) are simple, if the stamens are well exserted, it is A. cyaneum, if the stamens are included, it is Allium sikkimense (or beesianum)... this a tried and true simplification for blue-flowered allium plants from China in cultivation, but there's more to the story, so see earlier discussion on the same topic in the link below. Your plant is Allium cyaneum, in a lovely form, most definitely not sikkimense.  There are foliar differences too, and here again your plant is a match for A. cyaneum.

Thank you, Mark for a very decisive identification, and very useful links. Thank you also Magnar and Wietse for you contributions, with photos. I sowed A. sikkimense from SRGC-seed this year, and the leaves of the three seedlings that resulted are already twice the height of my mature A. cyaneum. Magnar, I got my A. cyaneum as a plant from Gunvor and Jostein Øverås' Fjellhagen in the mid-90s.

Thanks again,
Knud

[TheOnionMan]

This evening I was walking and looking between the alliums, and I saw something special in the flowering seedlings of a. macranthum;
a pure White flower!! It's not a very good photo because it's already getting dark outside a little. I think it's a beauty

Oh Wietse, that is so special! But even your regular form of A. macranthum is special, much darker than what I've grown.  Sadly, with last year's record-breaking heat and drought, one of my treasures, Allium macranthum from a Ludlow and Sheriff collection in Bhutan 1990, expired in the extreme drought.   I've grown this fine form for 20 years, and now its gone.  I did share a piece with John Lonsdale a couple years back, so maybe he still has it going.  Any way, A. macranthum is a most unique and desirable species, and I mourn the loss of this pedigree pale pinkish form.

[ArnoldT]

Hey mark.

I have some A. macranthum from you.  I'll have a look and see if mine is still kicking.

Arnold

[Boyed]

In my previous posts I promissed to show some native alliums.
Just came back from the country house whre the summer alliums were in full bloom. Will share some picture, though unfortunately I don't now the species names.

species 1 - tall allium with dark purple flower, height 150 cm, diametre of bloom 7,5 - 8 cm

[Boyed]

species 2 - height 60 - 65 cm, dimatre of bloom 3 cm
species 3 - interesting drarf white allium, cuttie

[TheOnionMan]

Hey mark.

I have some A. macranthum from you.  I'll have a look and see if mine is still kicking.

Arnold

That would be wonderful Arnold... I would so grateful, keep me informed if they set seed... my plants rarely (almost never) set seed!

[TheOnionMan]

species 2 - height 60 - 65 cm, dimatre of bloom 3 cm
species 3 - interesting drarf white allium, cuttie

Thanks for posting these Zhirair, really lovely alliums. Do you have a photo of the foliage on this first species you posted, foliage necessary information to arrive at a potential identification.

The second allium, with dark color and white filamentous ciliate exserted stamens fits the description of A. fuscoviolaceum, described as having heads up to 3 cm, stem height 40-70 cm, and flowers that smell of dung or rotting meat!  Aside from the scent, it seems to be a match, A. fuscoviolaceum is from E. Turkey,  Transcaucasia, Azerbaijan, to Iran... certainly in your area.  It's a dark brooding Allium, most handsome I think!

The third allium looks like a form of A. albidum, maybe even var. caucasicum.

[wmel]

After weeks of rain, at last we have some sun again today.
We had a lot of problems harvesting al the bulbs because of the rain, but now al tulips are lifted and we are almost ready cleaning and making ready for export, so now we have some more time for our alliums again.
I just made some photos and wil post them here
carinatum pink is a better growing selection (selected from seed). In the two photos of lenkoranicum you can see also selections from seed, but they look very different than my true a. lenkoranicum. Are they other varities??

garden view 28-07-2011
a. carinatum pink 28-07-2011
a. carinatum true 28-07-2011 3
a. lenkoranicum  28-07-2011 1
a. lenkoranicum  28-07-2011 6
a. Summer Drummer 28-07-2011 2

[wmel]

And some more photo's.......

a. wallichii dark 28-07-2011 1
a. wallichii  28-07-2011 1
a. tuncelianum 28-07-2011   (end of the flowering period )
a. scabriflorum 28-07-2011 1
a. nutans 28-07-2011
a. macranthum White 28-07-2011 1

[Regelian]

These later blooming alliums are an eye opener.  I hope we will see seed from some of them on the SeedEX this year.  They can really fill the gap when most other perennials are finishing

Mark,  great article in the NARGS journal.